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Purdue University - Parking - Parking - College ProwlerCollege Prowler3.08

Parking

B-
Where does this grade come from?View all Parking rankingsReview this school to add your opinion

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Quick Stats

Student Parking Lot? Yes
There are many lots, plus several parking garages.
Freshmen Allowed to Park? No
Approximate Parking Permit Cost $40–$70
Common Parking Tickets
  • Expired meter: $20
  • Loading zone: $20
  • No parking zone: $20
  • Parking in an “A” zpot: $25
  • Reserved parking: $25
  • University parking only: $25
Best Places to Find a Spot
  • Residence hall parking lots
  • C garages
  • The stadium parking lot
  • Anywhere on West Lafayette streets
  • Anywhere after 5 p.m.
Good Luck Getting a Spot Here
  • Metered parking outside residence halls
  • Along the street during class hours

Student Author OverviewWhat's This?

Parking on any college campus is a nightmare, but at least it’s an organized nightmare at Purdue. Parking garages and spaces open up after 5 p.m., making it safe and easy for students living off campus to participate in evening activities. Sure, the “C” parking spots feel like they’re a mile away, but shuttles are provided from the lots to campus, so you don’t even have to walk if you don’t feel like it. Really, it’s not as bad as people make it out to be. That being said, Purdue has increased the number of “C” permits issued, but decreased the number of “C” parking spots. Plus, if you choose to illegally park in, say, a loading zone or an “A” spot, you run the risk of being caught by what students affectionately refer to as the “parking Nazis.”

The one bright spot in this ominous gloom is that Purdue’s campus is laid out in such a way that driving around campus is unnecessary. Shuttles transport students for free from the major apartment complexes, and the excellent CityBus system provides free and easy transport from the Greater Lafayette area. Freshmen, leave your cars at home this first year—you can walk practically anywhere, and it’s much easier than incurring the wrath of the parking gods, who will bestow hefty parking fines on you.

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Purdue Student ReviewsWhat's This?

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Parking at Purdue University

ladyengineer

Engineering '16

3.8
B+

It's Okay

You have to keep everything chained and register it with the police department.Precautions for theft!!!

Record of 100robberies/year

May 14, 2012

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Parking at Purdue University

brianne530

Agricultural Teacher Education '13

3.8
B+

Could Be Better

The parking could be better, personally I think they should make the parking on Russel have lines so that people don't park ridiculously far away from each other. There could be more spots in areas that seem like they have useless space taken up.

Apr 25, 2012

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Parking at Purdue University

jamiaustin535

Chemical Engineering '14

0.0
F

No Parking.

Purdue basically fails. There is no where to park. You can essentially not drive a car to campus. there are two streets with free parking, but they are ALWAYS filled and aren't even that close to campus. There are a few parking garages but they are full 90% of the time from 8 am to 5 pm. There is no where to park. Pointless to even bring a car except for going to Walmart.

Mar 15, 2012

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Page 1 of 18
User rating for Purdue University - Parking is 2.3 out of 5 based on 52 user reviews.

Student Survey Poll ResultsWhat's This?

Rate the campus parking on the following topics

How convenient is off-campus parking?

Facts

Getting a Parking Permit

Any registered student whose local place of residence is at least 1.5 miles from campus may purchase a C permit for $40 per year. This is the parking pass that most students have. Students employed by Purdue at least 30 hours per week are eligible to purchase an “A” permit for $96 per year, or a “B” permit for $40 per year. These passes get the best parking spots, but you only get them if you work for the University, and they are quite limited. You also have the option of purchasing “C” garage permits instead of “C” lot permits. These allow you to park in a specific parking garage. However, these are only available through an application process. Students living in residence halls have the option for purchasing a residence hall pass, which is a stellar option if you have a car but still live in the dorms.

Did You Know?
  • Be sure to pay your parking tickets right away. If you have three unpaid tickets, and you get a fourth, a bright yellow boot gets put on your car, and you have to pay enormous amounts of money to get it taken off!
  • If you're that pressed for time and need a parking spot, pronto, try parking in a loading zone (the best spots are the ones around Elliot Hall of Music). It's sort of like playing Russian roulette—you may get a ticket, you may not. Many of my friends did this, and it was about a 50-50 chance that they would get a ticket.

Parking ServicesWhat's This?

Parking Facilities Office
1877 Visitor Information Center
504 Northwestern Ave.
(765) 494-9494

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Most Recent Student Author View all

Name
Reema Siddiqui
Hometown
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College Prowler is seeking talented student authors to assist with writing and updating the College Prowler guides to their schools. This is a great opportunity for a student to gain experience and tremendous exposure, utilize new media techniques, and share advice with high school students about what life is really like at your college.

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How do we get our information? Find out here or report an error here. The statistics on our site are from the National Center for Education Statistics IPEDS database.
We update this information twice annually, most recently in May 2012, but it may not be the most recent information available for a particular school.
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