Though the parking machines at El Camino College are in working order, there are some adjustments that should be made to make them more convenient for students and visitors.

Some of the parking machines at EC have credit card slots, however, most only accept cash.

This should be fixed to allow students the option to pay with a credit card.

There are currently 31 parking machines and only nine of those parking machines accept credit card, EC Chief of Police Michael Trevis said.

With debit and credit cards being a common form of payment in today’s world, it can be much easier and convenient to use.

In the past, all of the parking machines accepted credit cards but there were fees that EC had to pay when a student or visitor used a credit card.

When people pay the $3 daily parking fee in cash, EC receives the full $3 amount.

Trevis said that EC has to pay the internet provider company, Ventek, $780 along with an additional 10 percent charged by banks which totals to $858 a year that EC does not collect.

For nine parking machines, EC pays $7,722 in fees which is money that the college is losing each year.

Although these fees may be expensive, it would make parking much more convenient for people and provide an additional way for them to pay for their daily parking pass.

The money that the college makes from daily parking passes, parking permits and parking fines goes toward parking safety and security which includes construction, operation, and maintenance of parking facilities.

According to the California Education Code Section 76360, “All parking fees collected shall be deposited in the designated fund of the district in accordance with the California Community Colleges Budget and Accounting Manual and shall be expended only for parking services …”

Trevis also said that the weather “exposed [the machines] to the elements, the dampness gets [into the credit card slots].”

It would be a good thing to consider and try to find a way to make the parking machines weather resistant so that they would not get damaged and so that EC would not have to repair any of the machines in the future.

“We have talked about maybe installing covers on our machines and it’ll get talked about again,” Trevis said.

When a new semester begins, parking can be stressful and hectic due to the heavy traffic and new students coming in every semester.

Trevis said that 9,300 semester parking permits have been sold for Spring 2019. These parking permits cost $35, which can be purchased at the cashier’s office. So far, EC has made roughly $325,500 this semester just from parking permits.

With many EC students driving, parking is an important aspect that should be made as easy and convenient for them as possible.

Editorials are unsigned and are written and voted upon by the editorial board.