General Policies

Motor vehicles parked on Howard University property at any time must be registered and also must display a valid hangtag or parking permit for the appropriate parking lot or area. This includes secondary vehicles driven to campus occasionally and temporary vehicles used in lieu of registered vehicles (i.e. rental cars).

VISITOR PARKING. Visitor parking is limited. Visitors should secure a visitor-parking permit from the Office of Parking and Shuttle Operations (OPSO) 2400 Sixth St. NW, Suite B-11, (202) 806-2000. There is a $4.00 daily charge for visitor permits.

ALL PARKING IS BY PERMIT ONLY. Vehicles parked without a valid permit are subject to ticketing, towing (at owners expense), and or immobilization. A permit holder who finds no space available in an assigned area should notify the OPSO which will arrange to temporarily park the vehicle in another lot. Parking patrons with proper authorization (drop off permit) may park for 15 minutes in an unassigned parking area for loading/unloading only with flashers on. This arrangement is void in reserved spaces, fire lanes and handicap spaces. Any vehicle found parked after the 15 minute period will be ticketed. No exception.

Personnel from Parking Enforcement, Campus Police, and Hospital Security enforce University parking regulations. Hangtags and permits are issued by OPSO. Parking privileges at Howard University can only be authorized and granted by OPSO for respective parking spaces under their management. Parking permits, access cards, and other parking paraphernalia issued to users of the University parking system remain the property of Howard University. The University reserves the right to:

refuse issuance of a parking permit

revoke or recall a permit

change parking assignments as deemed necessary

restrict the use of any parking space or lot at any time

determine hours of control

change any or all of its parking regulations at any time

close, reserve or restrict parking areas as deemed necessary

Permit Parking

Daily Visitor Permits:

Daily-parking permits can be obtained from the Office of Parking and Shuttle Operations (OPSO). The cost of the permit is $4.00 per day. Cash, check, or money order are the accepted forms of payment.

Contractor Permits:

Contractors who are performing work on the campus may obtain parking arrangements by contacting either OPSO or the appropriate contracting department. The cost of the permit is $30.00 monthly. Contractors are encouraged to car pool to the greatest extent possible.

Handicapped Parking Permits:

Faculty and staff requiring special handicapped parking accommodations must be validated by Human Resources (EEO) and have a parking assignment through a departmental allocation and a valid university hang tag or permit. Parking in a handicap-designated space requires the vehicle to be licensed with either a license plate or a valid state hang tag depicting the international mobility limitation. Designated handicapped parking spaces will be allotted to the departments by the Office of Parking and Shuttle Operations after individuals have been identified by department Parking Coordinators. Note that these spaces are limited. Reassignments may occur at the discretion of the responsible vice president, dean, director or designee in order to accommodate handicapped patrons.

To the extent possible, OPSO will work with Department Heads to facilitate requests for temporary handicapped accommodations. Students who need handicapped access must register through the Office of the Dean of Special Student Services. Visitors needing a handicapped accessible parking space will be directed by OPSO to a visitor space so designated. All persons who park on University parking lots, regardless of mobility limitations must have a valid permit and pay the appropriate parking fee. There is no free parking on campus parking lots.

Summer Parking Information:

Parking at the University is extremely limited, however there is less demand for parking during the summer sessions. Parking permits for summer sessions can be obtained from OPSO for a monthly fee. Parking for students is $24.00 per month. Students must be validated for summer school in order to qualify for summer parking. Parking for faculty/staff is $30.00 per month and valid staff ID is required.

Staff/Faculty Parking

Parking at the University is very limited. Employees who are unable to obtain a parking assignment must find alternatives to driving to campus. Staff and faculty parking assignments are made through departmental allocations. Employees who have parking assignments through their respective department or school must pick up the appropriate registration forms from their department parking coordinator. The forms must be filled out and returned to the coordinator. The coordinator, once all forms have been received, will forward them to OPSO for processing. Parking permits and expiration stickers are to be picked up from the department’s parking coordinator. THE DEPARTMENT HEAD, DEAN OR VICE PRESIDENT, MAKES ALL ASSIGNMENTS.

The annual parking fee parking fee is $300.00 for non reserve space and $400.00 for a reserve space.Two forms of payment are accepted for faculty/staff permits:

Payroll Deduction:

This type of payment is available only to permanent full time staff or full and part-time faculty. Students who are temporary employees cannot use the payroll deduction option for payment of permits. It is the employees' responsibility to verify that the proper deductions for parking are being made from their paycheck, and to report any errors directly to OPSO. The parking hangtag permit remains the property of Howard University. Return the hangtag to OPSO upon separation from the University. Failure to do so does not excuse an employee from payment of the correct fees and back parking charges.

Advance Payment:

Individuals not eligible for payroll deductions must pay in advance for a parking permit. Cash, check*, or money order are accepted. Permits must be purchased for a twelve month period.

*Checks must be imprinted with the name, address and phone number of issuing party. Valid University ID must be presented.

Student Parking

Student parking registration at the University is determined through a Parking Registration system. The registration is held following the spring semester of each year. The dates of the registration deadlines are announced through student media (Hilltop, etc.) and this website. Students must present a valid Howard University student ID card in order to register for the Parking Registration. Students who have parking assignments via the Parking Registration must pick up permits during the fall registration period. Unclaimed parking assignments will be sold via an automated random selection process. Parking is very limited and students are encouraged to rideshare or use alternatives to driving to campus. Howard Plaza Towers and Bethune Annex residents should apply through the residence manager’s office if they wish to park in the underground parking facilities. Permits must be purchased for a twelve month period. The annual student parking fee is $240.00. To effectively manage this limited resource, freshmen (First Time In College) students are not eligible for parking privileges on University lots. Freshmen are discouraged from bringing a car to campus as street parking is limited and aggressively enforced by District of Columbia authorities.

Special Events

Request for special events parking must be submitted in writing to the OPSO Parking Coordinator no later than seven days in advance of event date. The Special Events Form is available on the OPSO website. All special events parking must be coordinated through OPSO to insure parking lot availability, parking authorization and easy access to event sites.