University of Texas - DallasParking Summary

Written by Tue Tran

Tue Tran

Hometown

Hanoi, Vietnam

Major

Accounting, MIS

Grad Year

2015

View all previous student authors

UT Dallas car owners love to whine about parking, but, as it turns out, the parking experience essentially depends on each student’s conditions and habits. If you live relatively close to campus and can afford to arrive on campus before 9 or 10 a.m., parking is easy. However, for those long-distance commuters who enjoy lying in bed until 11, finding a vacant space can turn into a real nightmare of driving around the lots and following people walking to their cars in the hope of them driving away—don’t forget to rage at them if they simply go back for their phones. Overall, campus parking requires students to walk a bit, but it’s still much better than in older campuses elsewhere, which were first built for a handful of wealthy gentlemen in their horse carts. On top of that, UT Dallas is constantly expanding existing lots and adding new ones, so parking is expected to get even better in a few years.

It may surprise many students that, compared to other big schools, UT Dallas charges a relatively low parking rate, and the tickets are reasonable. Make no mistake: Authorized personnel work diligently to give you tickets, which can add up quickly to hurt your finances. However, they cost nowhere near the outrageous amounts some students claim them to be, especially if you’re not stupid enough to park in a fire lane or disabled space without permission.