Safety measures installed in response to complaints
Speed bumps were installed inside Bull Street Garage over spring break to make the garage safer for students.
The speed bumps are intended to slow vehicles and prevent accidents, said Bill Baker, USC’s Parking Services director, in an email response.
Bull Street was the only garage that underwent changes, and Baker said installation of the speed bumps was cheap and took about 90 minutes.
Labor was approximately $30, Baker said, and the university already owned the bumps. The speed bumps were installed in response to complaints that Parking Services received about vehicles traveling too fast.
“It creates a dangerous situation when cars are backing out of parking spaces,” Baker said.
Nelson Weston, a third-year political science student, has a parking spot this semester at Bull Street Garage. Weston said he has seen cars traveling up to 25 or 30 miles per hour in the garage and that it’s difficult to see these speeding cars when they are turning corners.
Weston said that the speed bumps have made him feel more secure and safer while driving.
“For the most part, everybody slows down,” Weston said. “That’s the most important factor.”
In addition to causing drivers to reduce speed, the speed bumps also help with visibility. Weston said that cars’ headlights now reflect off the speed bumps and that the reflection helps other drivers see these cars turning corners.
“I think just for safety measures they should be put in all garages,” Weston said.
While the speed bumps are intended to slow people down, Jonathan Berry, a third-year chemical engineering student, said they can also cause physical damage to drivers’ cars. He said that because the Bull Street Garage speed bumps aren’t long enough, they can harm vehicles.
“I get their purpose to make people slow down, but they’re kind of annoying because they only hit one of the tires on your car,” Berry said. “It’s at the cost of messing up your alignment.”