A rite of passage for modern teenagers is certainly the obtaining of one’s very own driver’s license. Getting one enables independence. And, of course, getting a driver’s license means being able to avoid riding an overcrowded, hot, bus ride. Teenagers at Bethel High are like-minded teenagers, and they all are looking for space in the senior parking lot.

Of course, nobody would argue that there is plenty of space in the parking lot. Some might even say that the parking lot could additionally fit the junior class. However, at 2:15, at the end of the day, high school seniors endure the tedious process of exiting the lot. Dozens of seniors swarm to their cars, and all rush for the exits, and thus a traffic jam is formed, occasionally encompassing a school bus. Between the buses, the lack of senior organization, and the parked parent-pickup vehicles, the end of the day at BHS is marked by complete discord for drivers. But what is to blame for this madness?

According to Nathalie Racines, a senior at BHS, “The shape of the senior parking lot is horrible,” she explains. “Nobody can ever tell which side is the entrance and which side is the exit, and if both sides of the weird ‘u’ can be used for entering and exiting it should be a little wider.”

Not only are drivers irritated with the current state of affairs, but pedestrians also find the lot to be dangerous. Jon De los Santos, a junior at BHS feels that the parking lot does not provide good vision for drivers, and that the drivers are sometimes speeding, making them a threat to walkers. He explains, “Since it’s a half circle some people have trouble seeing.” He also adds, “Even with these problems they are speeding, so to speak, through it and have to stop quickly and find a way around me without hitting me”.

At the end of each day, both ends of the “u” experience a line of cars, all impatiently rushing out of the oddly shaped lot. Loud rap music and fervent beeping of horns also ensues. Altogether, a scene of chaos and frustration is produced. It seems evident that between inexperienced, rushing, teenage drivers and the shape of the lot that people are having trouble enjoying a class-privilege, while others are being hindered by its existence.