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Many people see UCT's campus as easily accessible by car and expect parking to be provided. The increased demand for parking has seen many inappropriate areas being allocated for parking and this has caused damage to the environment.
This situation has arisen because of an increase in the number of students, increased car usage and a longer day spent on campus.
At the same time, UCT wishes to be open and accessible to the wider community.
Further surface parking (with some exceptions in outlying areas) will not be increased, and the creation of further structured parking (above or below ground) is not within the university's financial reach.
UCT's Access Management Plan tackles the issue of parking and aims to provide equitable and safe access to the campus while improving quality of life and environmental values. It calls for the creation of park-and-ride facilities, both on and off campus. The idea is to provide free parking for staff and students to ease the parking demand on campus and closer to the academic buildings.
Parking privileges for staff, students and visitors differ and priorities have been agreed as follows:
Parking on campus and in designated park-and-ride sites is restricted to cars displaying a current parking disk or visitors permit (blue slip).
The pricing of parking disks takes into account the convenience of parking on campus and the cost of alternative arrangements. The concept of overselling (the number of disks sold beyond the number of disks available in a particular area) is part of the system and depends on the seniority of the disk-holder and the corresponding type of disk. Red bays are oversold to a limited extent to ensure the availability of vacant bays at most times of day, while student bays are oversold to an unlimited extent.
No bays are reserved for staff or students on a permanent basis other than bays authorised by the disability service for the sole use of disabled persons.
Parking disks are only valid for the specific vehicle for which the disk has been purchased (except for student lift clubs).
First-year students may not bring onto, or park on university property, any vehicle other than a motorcycle.
A controlled access area has been established on the Upper Campus by means of two sets of booms on the ring road. Traffic office staff control these booms in order to limit access to staff, certain graduate students, authorised visitors and parents transporting their children to the Educare Centre, as long as they are displaying a valid disk.
The following types of disks/permits are available to staff, students and visitors:
Red parking disk
Yellow parking disk
Masters/Phd parking disc – P18
Blue parking disk
Green parking disk
Temporary parking disk
Transit disk
Black parking disk
Rhodes Memorial parking disk
Visitors permit
For carpooling, more than one but not more than 4 students may purchase, for a fee, a single blue parking disk for up to 4 vehicles.
Staff and students may purchase a disk for more than one vehicle provided they are owned by the same person.
Student parking disk holders in residence may park in designated areas near their respective residences and within the grounds of off-campus residences. These students may also park in unmarked bays on any campus.
Student disk holders in Smuts and Fuller Halls may not park on the Upper Campus except in the designated parking area.
Red and yellow parking disks are valid for a calendar year. Student parking disks are issued for a calendar year and remain valid until March 1 of the next calendar year.