Student drivers have tons of responsibilities, and yet often they do not get the credit they deserve. Despite stereotypes of overly cautious or overconfident new drivers, most student drivers take their new responsibilities seriously.

   With the recent snowfall and sudden weather switch to the temperature being  below zero, student drivers have had to adapt to the change as well as driving slower or changing their morning routine to get ready. One student described the way he gets ready to drive to school, if there was a lot of snow the next day.

   “I heat up my car so that I’m not cold and get rid of any fog or ice on my windshield,” said Vernon Tylor, senior.  

   There is also an issue that some students have with leaving for lunch and the short amount of time the school gives students, especially if it’s cold or there’s snow or rain. Some students disagree though. 

   “That wouldn’t be a good idea,” said Trenton Marulewski, senior. “They should just allow for tardiness of up to a few minutes, in case something happens.”

   The real problem with driving to school is the student parking lot at the end and beginning of the day. It upsets most students because it is such an unorganized mess. There are also people who will zoom through the parking lot and cut parents and other students off without regard for their safety.  One student provided instructions on how to fix it or improve the parking lot system. 

   “Overall, I think we need the parking lot to be bigger,” said Taylor.”“People need to be more patient when exiting the parking lot, and we need to be more strict on people going 20 over when really we should be driving 5 to 10 miles per hour.” 

   Having a car comes with financial responsibilities like paying for gas and fixing it if something goes wrong with the car. Gas prices are very high in Rockford, ranging from $3.45 to $3.50. For students who drive, there’s the question of whether they regret driving because of these costs. 

   “While getting gas is expensive, it will push us more to electric vehicles or at least ones that use less fuel, which will make our ecosystem less polluted,” said Marulewski.