Barton has returned to parking at the B-School. But even that lot is not without hazard. Barton says that he almost received a ticket for not parking in the residents' section of the lot.

Regardless of the inconveniences of keeping a car on campus, for some students a car is a must. Johanna K. Neilson '88, a Cabot House resident, brought a car to Harvard because she has ice hockey practice every night on the other side of the river.

"I wouldn't have a car if it weren't for sports," Neilson says. Parking at the ice rink is not a problem because her coach gave her a pass, she adds.

Neilson says that the car is especially useful because her roommates--a hockey player, a tennis player, and another a soccer player--share it and the expenses. This type of cooperative arrangement is not uncommon. Farley says that when he was paying $40 a month to park at the Botanic Gardens, his roommates helped pay the costs since they used the car as much as he did.

While many undergraduates have problems parking, the situation is, in some ways, worse for graduate students. Any undergraduate who has the money can park in a Harvard-owned lot. Graduate students go through a lottery at registration to determine who gets parking, because most of them live in the area north of the Yard where parking lots such as the Everett St. and Broadway garages are crowded, Smith says.

With all the disadvantages, many students think a car is more trouble than it's worth and decide not to have freedom on wheels. "My stepfather asked me if I wanted to have a car on campus, but I couldn't think of a use for one," says Caroline E. Lovelace '90. "The only reason I can see for having a car is to go and get kegs," she says.

The abundance of public transportation in the area is another reason cited against owning a car. "We have the T and the shuttle, so you don't really have to have a car," Farley says. He says that it is only beneficial to have a car if parking is inexpensive or if the owner is rich.

Walser no longer has her car and says she doesn't miss it. "I don't want to get it back," she says. Walser noted that if someone desperately needs a car, he can rent one relatively inexpensively. "You can always use a bus or find a friend who has a car," Walser says.