Topic: Contract Parking

Complete our Request for Parking Enforcement Form

Reserved stalls are being phased out and are not available, except by special request. Email parking@umn.edu to inquire about availability.

If you forgot your hangtag

We no longer offer no-tags. If you forget your hangtag, please follow the guidelines below.

If you lost your hangtag

Please visit PTS with a credit card or exact cash (no change available) to purchase a replacement hangtag for $20. Because we no longer offer no-tags, please follow the guidelines below to park on campus if needed. 

If your hangtag was stolen

Please visit PTS to claim a replacement hangtag. If you provide a police report, there will be no charge for the hangtag. If you don't have a police report, you can purchase the hangtag for $20 with a credit card or exact cash (no change available). Because we no longer offer no-tags, please follow the guidelines below to park on campus if needed. 

Guidelines for non-hangtag parking

Please use the below information to park at the University on the day your hangtag is missing. Make sure to take action based on your situation as soon as possible.

1. Park in any gated/controlled parking facility with available public parking access by taking a ticket.
2. Submit the Request Validation Form with the ticket number.
3. We receive immediate notification that the form has received a submission. Once your contract has been verified, the ticket will be validated.
4. When exiting, if the gate does not automatically raise, insert or scan the ticket.

Things like dirt/snow and the position of your vehicle or the camera can affect the reader's ability to accurately read your license plate. While your U Card is your primary access credential, there are a few things you can do to help:

1. Clean dirt/snow off your license plate
2. Center your vehicle in the lane

Please know that we continue to work to improve the license plate reader feature. Do not hesitate to send an email to parking@umn.edu with details of the date, time, and which location and lane you were using when the reader did not work. We investigate to see if we have a setting or condition that may need to be addressed.

24/7 Access

Contract holders have 24/7/365 access to their designated parking facility. This means you can leave your car at the U and use your Universal or Employee Transit Pass to save extra parking costs.

Faculty, staff, and students with parking contracts have off-peak contract parking at 15 other facilities. Faculty and staff with parking contracts have 24/7 reciprocal parking access at specific facilities.

Off-peak contract parking

Students, faculty, and staff with 24/7 parking contracts may park at one of 15 facilities during Off-Peak Contract Parking hours if space is available. Off-peak hours are 4:30 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. Monday–Friday and all day on weekends.

Reciprocal contract parking

Faculty and staff with parking contracts have 24/7 reciprocal parking access at specific facilities other than their contracted facility.

• Reciprocal space is not guaranteed and is available on a space-available basis. Event rates and large group reservations may impact space availability, which is at the discretion of parking attendants.
• If reciprocal parking accounts for more than 50 percent of contract use, reciprocal access may be revoked.
• Reciprocal parking is not available for student contracts, night contracts, and contracts shared by groups of people, such as departmental contracts and card pool groups.

Locations

* Denotes off-peak locations
^ Denotes reciprocal parking locations

East Bank

• Art Museum Garage* 
• Church Street Garage* 
• East River Road Garage* 
• 4th Street Ramp*^
• Nolte Center Garage* 
• Oak Street Ramp* 
• Prospect Park Ramp* 
• Parkway South Ramp* 
• University Avenue Ramp* 
• Washington Avenue Ramp*

West Bank

• Lot 86*
• 19th Avenue Ramp*
• 21st Avenue Ramp*^
• West Bank Office Building Ramp*^

St. Paul

• Gorner Avenue Ramp*^
• Any contract holder with a valid hangtag may park in a contract lot with 20 spaces or more on the St. Paul campus 4:30 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. Monda –Friday and all day Saturday and Sunday.

Ungated/Uncontrolled Parking Lots

Hangtag

If a parking lot does not have a gate, a hangtag is required to park there. Hangtags are directly associated with contracts when they are created and must be claimed at the PTS office before parking in the contract location.

If a contract holder forgets the hangtag:

1. Park in any gated/controlled parking facility with available public parking access by taking a ticket.
2. Submit the Request Validation Form with the ticket number.
3. Once your contract has been verified, the ticket will be validated.
4. When exiting, if the gate does not automatically raise, insert or scan the ticket.

Replacements for lost hangtags can be purchased at the PTS office with a credit card or cash for $20.

Stolen hangtags can be replaced for free if a police report is provided. If no police report is provided, a replacement can be purchased at the PTS office with a credit card or cash for $20.

Gated/Controlled Parking Facilities

View our contract parking guide video

If none of the access credentials listed below seem to work at a contract facility upon entrance, take a ticket. When exiting, press the help button. If credentials don’t seem to work upon exit, press the help button.

U Card & PTS Parking Card (PPC)

• U Cards are the primary access credentials for University students and employees.
• A PPC is an additional card that can be used to access contract parking facilities and can be purchased at the PTS office for $20 with a credit card or cash. A maximum of two PPCs can be linked to one contract.
• UMP employees and departmental contracts do not have U Card access and must use a PPC.

Scan your U Card or PPC at the reader at a gate by holding it near the card reader. Do not wave the card.

License Plate Recognition Technology

The use of License Plate Reader (LPR) technology can reduce idle time during entry for contract holders and during exit for both contract holders and public visitors.

LPR should be considered a secondary access credential. U Cards and PPCs are the primary credentials.

Eligibility

Most individual student and faculty/staff contracts are eligible for the optional LPR feature. Shared contracts, such as departmental contracts, are not eligible for LPR.

How to Use

Contract holders can use the LPR form to link a maximum of two license plates to their contract. A license plate can only be linked to one contract.

Register, Update, or Remove a License Plate in the LPR System

If you can’t access the form, email parking@umn.edu.

If payroll deductions fail for a parking contract, the contract will be canceled. Contact parking@umn.edu to determine if you are eligible for contract reinstatement.

• Contract holders may retain their parking contract for up to three months while looking for another position within the University of Minnesota. 
• Laid-off employees who return to the University within one year shall be restored to the top of the waiting list in their previous facility.

A contract holder on official leave for a minimum of six months may suspend their contract for the duration of the leave.

1. Submit the Suspension of Contract Due to Leave form.
2. Your current parking contract will be canceled.
3. Notify parking@umn.edu when you have returned from leave.
4. If space is available at your previously contracted parking facility, the contract will be reinstated. If the facility is full upon return, you will receive the first available contract from the wait list.

If the leave is less than six months, you can either:

1. Cancel the contract and purchase a new contract upon return from leave, subject to wait lists.
2. Retain the contract. As the contract holder, you will remain responsible for the parking contract for the duration of the leave. If the contract is payroll-deducted and you will not be receiving paychecks, you can arrange payment by emailing parking@umn.edu.

If your request for suspension is less than 6 months or if you return in less than 6 months from the start date of your leave, your submission of the form will not be honored.

Pretax parking deductions save you money on taxes by reducing taxable income. 

PTS recommends that individuals thinking about having parking charges deducted post-tax first consult your personal tax advisor. 

If you opt to change your tax election, contact us to begin the process of completing an after-tax election form.

Because 9-month employees receive 20 paychecks rather than the standard 26 paychecks over 12 months, the cost of an annual contract has to be spread over fewer paychecks. 

• Every January, the amount deducted from each paycheck is increased to cover the cost of a contract during the summer months when a 9-month employee is, presumably, not receiving paychecks from the university. 
• Deductions from the Sept-Dec paychecks for 9-month employees are less than the standard amount as a means to aid charge proration for employees who may not return after the summer and forget to cancel their contracts. 

Please contact parking@umn.edu if you need a 9-month Staff & Faculty parking contract.

Contract parking fees are taken as pre-tax deductions from University payroll checks. However, Parking & Transportation Services' contract parking periods differ from payroll periods. Below is the payment chart for the current contract year.

October 1, 2023 - September 30, 2024

October 2, 2024 - September 19, 2025

Notes

• The monthly rate is calculated from the annual rate divided over 12 months.
• The bi-weekly rate is the annual rate divided by the amount of pay periods in the parking year (October 1 thru September 30).