<p>A car was almost a necessity at the University I went to. The campus shuttle was once an hour and a half late on a 20 minute route (missed my class completely). 10+ is typical. The other buses (the ones that went off campus) were regularly as much as 45 minutes late (for an hour long route). If you needed to go anywhere off-campus you had to schedule nearly three extra hours or you’d risk missing your next class. An off-campus job was completely out of the question. It was just one of the many reasons why I’ll never go back to that campus again.</p>
<p>I don’t even have my own car anyway ( I drive my mom’s) but even if I did, I probably wouldn’t bring it to school. Being in downtown LA automatically means that parking is horrendous. I just finished freshman year so I don’t know many upperclassmen who have cars but from what I’ve heard, trying to get parking is an unpleasant experience.</p>
<p>Looking back, I pretty much never needed a car. All the important places I needed to go to - dollar store, CVS, restaurants, movies - were mostly within walking distance, or we had a shuttle provide transportation for certain events. The only bummer was that I couldn’t find a way to go to Six Flags or Disneyland, but my friend and roommate-to-be lives in LA so he’ll probably bring his car and the fun will commence. 
:)</p>
<p>I’m pretty good about turning down rides if I don’t want to drive, and I need my car so I’m not dependent on the campus shuttle all the time. The only pain is when I have car trouble, because I’m 30 minutes from a repair shop that can service my car.</p>
<p>We took a car up to DD in May. She is a rising senior and lives in an apartment. She really is enjoying having the car. It makes it much nicer for her to go to the grocery store. She can buy more and not have to go as often. Groceries on a bus are not easy to manage. Her only problem has been others respecting her paid parking spot.:(</p>
<p>I know my mom expects me to bring my car with me to college, whether my school allows it or not. She says it wouldn’t make sense for her to buy a car for senior year and not be able I use it for freshman year in college. If I go to UM, I’ll have to rent a parking spot.</p>
<p>Our campus has multiple parking lots/ramps, but I haven’t brought my car yet in the two years I’ve been at school. I live on campus in the dorms, so I can easily walk to classes and campus events. Students get to ride the buses in town for free, and they conveniently have stops near main campus buildings. Also, some stores and fast food places (Target, Cashwise, Shopko, Arby’s, etc) are about 1.4 miles away from campus, so my friend and I just walk there during nice weather if we need anything. No need for a car.</p>