Maynooth University is the fastest growing University on the island of Ireland. This year they took in in excess of 3,500 first year students, compared to 2018 where there was an influx of 2,000; this is a 75% increase over approximately four years. Compounding this with a record number of repeating students leading to a ballooned student population and the campus facilities are unable to cope.

One would think that the facilities on campus should be growing at a similar rate to facilitate this growth. However, the plans of the new student centre have been scrapped leading a lot of students to wonder where their student fees are going. From the student levy alone, the University have collected approximately €12 million over the course of 9 years and to date have delivered on ZERO projects. One of the biggest grievances is that the University have not even been able to supply adequate parking for their students, even though they have oversold parking permits (which cost €40 for the academic year).

All this leads to a cramped campus and students unable to park their cars. This is especially unfair because Maynooth has one of the biggest commuting populations of any University in the country. 

Clamping on campus is at an all-time high with students expected to pay an €80 release fee, even though they paid for parking that is non-existent. APCOA is a private, for-profit German traffic management company who operate the clamping service on campus. They do not care about the welfare of the students, and apparently neither do Maynooth University themselves. 

Allegedly, there is a new car park under construction, but , sadly, this is too little too late as the new semester is already underway. With any foresight or common sense this development would have been completed before the arrival of students. I mean, how long does it take to build a car park ffs.

The obvious course of action the University needs to take is to acknowledge these violations of our students' rights and suspend all clamping for any student with a valid permit until such time as there are facilities to accomodate them properly, as it is unjust to expect students to be extorted due to the University's lack of coordination.

If you care about the students of Maynooth University please take a moment to sign this petition and allow our students to pursue their education without abuse in an already economically challenging time.

Thank you.