By Jessica Babb | Broadcast Managing Editor

Baylor Parking Services has added a car counter in the Speight Parking Garage on campus. The counter lets students and faculty know when a parking garage is full.

“We’ve gotten several nice comments on the counter and how effective it is,” said Matt Penney, director of Baylor Parking Services.

There is a sign located right outside the entrance to the Speight Parking Garage showing exactly how many spaces are empty.

“It counts cars going into the garage and it counts cars going out of the garage,” Penney said.

The sensors that count the cars are located in the speed bumps leading into the garage.

“When [students] are driving to the garage, they can see, ‘hey the garage is full,’ and that gives them a little time to find another place to park,” Penney said.

Parking Services has partnered with Student Government to install two more car counters in other parking garages on campus.

“So we are hoping this limits the time that kids search for parking and they can get to class faster, and they can just do faster the stuff they want to get done on campus,” said Aledo sophomore Elizabeth Larson, who has been the student senator assisting Parking Services with the counter.

Each individual car counter costs about 10 thousand dollars and installation for each device costs about five thousand dollars.

“I’m hoping that this makes students’ parking experience better and that we can find solutions for our parking issues,” Larson said.

“I hope it makes a safer campus and it easier to find a parking place,” Penney said.