A blood drive allowed students, staff, and faculty members to erase more than $10,000 in parking citation fines. 

UC Riverside’s Transportation and Parking Services, or TAPS, held its annual “Citations for Donations” campaign Oct. 30-31, which this year featured a two-day blood drive supported by the Inland Empire blood bank LifeStream. 

For every pint donated, donors received up to $75 in credit toward their citation. That resulted in 178 wiped-out tickets, totaling $10,736 in reduced citation fees.  

Fall quarter yields a greater number of citations because people tend to forget parking rules, said Irma Henderson, TAPS director. Common infractions include parking in unassigned lots and parking vehicles facing forward in horizontal spaces, she said. 

“The event is in good will; we understand drivers are not happy when they receive a citation,” Henderson said. “This year’s blood drive was also meant to support the community because there is a growing need for blood donations in our region.” 

LifeStream collected 210 donations, the largest on-campus total since February 2018. The blood collected will help at least 470 patients, according to LifeStream. 

TAPS, a self-funded and self-sustaining operation, has previously held other Citations for Donations campaigns to help the campus community pay off tickets.