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Parking Services

FAQ's for Students

Here are some frequently asked questions about ticketing and towing at URI.

Q. How do I order a permit?

A. Visit our Student Parking Permits page. Purchase your parking permit online through The Permit Store website.


Q. Can I purchase a permit in your office?

A. No.They are only available online through www.thepermitstore.com


Q. How much does a permit cost?

A. Resident permits are $250 for the year. Commuter permits are $175 for the year. Price subject to change.


Q. Why hasn’t my permit been approved?

A. If it has been more than 48 hours since you placed your order, your name may not have been on the resident/commuter list provided to our office. Please contact your housing office and verify that they have you on their list and have them contact our office confirming your residency. Another reason may be that your online application was not complete. Please review your application at thepermitstore.com to be sure a payment was made and all appropriate information required is complete.


Q. Can I pay for the permit with a money order or by check through the mail?

A. Yes, but the permit will take much longer to arrive and you cannot print out a temporary permit until they actually receive the payment in the mail.


Q. Where can I park?

A. Please review our Campus Parking Map for the assigned parking areas for each different type of permit (i.e. Commuter, Freshman Resident, Faculty/Staff, Visitor, etc.) at:

Click here for Parking Map.


Q. Does this parking permit work for Providence Campus parking?

A. No. For information on parking in Providence please go to the following link: http://www.uri.edu/prov/studentresources/starting/id_parking.html

Q. How long is a parking permit good for?

A. Permits are valid from September 1 through August 31 of the current academic year.


Q. Can I exchange my current permit for a different permit if my residency changes the next semester?

A. If your residency status changed you may order a REPLACEMENT permit for the new status. (i.e. If you had a Freshman Resident permit in the Fall and moved into a sorority for the spring you would go back online and purchase a Replacement Greek & Special Permit). Replacement permits costs $40. If you do not want to purchase the replacement permit, you may continue to park in the area that you originally purchased the permit for.


Q. Are the permits half price if purchased only for the second semester?
A.No. Parking permits are not pro-rated per course or per-semester.


Q. I do not have a parking permit but will have my car here for a few days, is there anything I can do to be sure I’m not towed?

A. We offer a one-week temporary parking permit in our office for $30.00 (cash only). This parking permit allows you to park in the Plains Road Commuter Lot in one designated row. Consecutive weeks may be purchased at one time. Temporary permits are not sold in advance.


Q. What do I do if I need to take a different car to campus than the one the permit  is affixed to?

A. Permits may be used on another family member's vehicle.  For further information please see Vehicle Change Procedures.


Q. My car went into the shop and I forgot to take the permit off the windshield to put on the other car. What do I do?

A. You should still update the vehicle information in your account online. You will be subject to receiving warnings for “non-display” until your permit is affixed to the vehicle.


Q. My vehicle was towed. How do I find it?

A. Call Parking Services at (401)874-9281. We can tell you what company has towed your vehicle and will provide you with their phone number. If it is after normal business hours please contact the URI Police Dispatch at 874-4910 for this information.


Q. How can I prevent my vehicle from being towed?

A. First, you must register your vehicle with URI by ordering a parking permit online. Then view the URI Campus Parking Map and park in your designated area in a legal parking space between two white lines. DO NOT rely on parking information that you hear from friends, RA’s, faculty or staff. Our website has a great deal of important information including all of the rules and regulations for parking on campus. If you are still unclear as to the rules, please contact our office at (401) 874-9281.


Q. If the gate to a Faculty/Staff parking lot is open, may I, as a Student, park there?

A. No. The Faculty/Staff lots are specifically reserved for employees and/or affiliates of The University of Rhode Island. If the gate is open it is either due to an emergency, an event or possibly that the gate is broken. Students are not permitted to park in Faculty/Staff parking lots and will be warned and towed similarly to any Faculty/Staff parking lot.


Q. What dorms are classified for Apartment Resident permits?

A. Only residents of the Gateway Apartments and the University Village Apartments are eligible for the Apartment resident permit. If a student lives in any other place on campus they should purchase either a Freshman Resident or an Upperclass Resident permit. Wiley and Garrahy Hall residents should NOT apply for the Apartment Resident permit.


Q. What do I do in the event that the parking lot that I normally park in is full?

A. In this case the student would want to check the next available student lot. The University offers multiple parking lots for each type of permit. It is the responsibility of the permit holder to make certain they have parked in a lot that is designated for their permit type.


Parking for the first few weeks of school can get crowded due to students trying to adjust their class schedules. The Security Officers are aware of this and accommodations are made during the overcrowded weeks at the beginning of each semester. During these times, commuter students may park in resident student lots.


The Fine Arts North Commuter Lot and the Christ the King Church parking lot both become full by 8:30 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. If you do not arrive prior to that time, please go to the Plains Road Commuter lot at the end of Flagg Road to prevent unnecessary traffic congestion in those lots.