ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — A new University of Central Florida parking policy could be encouraging students to drive drunk, students say.
There's a new warning that all overnight cars will be towed and the driver will be hit with a $125 fine at an off-campus plaza filled with bars packed with UCF students.
Students say it's encouraging them to get into their cars after a night of drinking, head down a road and onto Alafaya Trail, one of the biggest drunk driving roads in the county.
"It's putting college students at risk, 100 percent," UCF student Tommy Valentine said.
It's hard to miss the new signs that are all over the University Commons Shopping Center
It's something Valentine knows all too well, as his truck was towed as part of the property manager's aggressive new towing policy.
It started after students used the plaza as a lot for a football game.
Students and some of the bar owners said that a new crackdown is encouraging patrons who leave their cars there after visiting the bars and drinking too much to drive drunk.
They're also worried it'll hurt business.
Bar managers are outraged and students said they're scared that they're encouraged to drive drunk because they don't want to pay $125 to get their car back in the morning.
The Orange County Sheriff's Office said it considers drunken driving on Alafaya Trail a big problem.
"There is a huge drinking and driving problem and this new policy, in theory, is only making it worse," UCF student Valentine said.
The bars are asking students to reach out to the property manager directly. They've even posted their email address for patrons to do that.
WFTV emailed the property management company and called them for comment, but did not receive a response.