Parking and Driving

All vehicles must display a valid permit from the Department of Public Safety at all times. This does not include vehicles at the Bakersfield Regional Center.

The University Vehicle Code contains all rules and regulations concerning motor vehicles. All permit orders, as well as citation payment and appeals can be completed online.

All vehicles parked on the Point Loma or Mission Valley campuses found without a valid parking permit or parked in violation are subject to citation and/or being towed at the owner’s expense. 

Student, Staff, and Faculty Vehicle Registration

Faculty, staff, and students must register their vehicles online and order a permit. Once you submit your permit order you will receive emailed instructions on how to obtain your permit sticker.

Freshman Vehicle Policy 

Freshmen resident students are NOT PERMITTED to bring vehicles to campus at any time, nor may they park in surrounding neighborhoods or the city lot. This policy applies to all residential freshmen. For the purpose of this policy, a freshman student is defined as any student who graduated from high school within the past 12 months.

Freshmen violating the policy will be fined $500. A second offense will result in an automatic referral to the Parking Appeals Committee and another fine of $500. Enrollment may be jeopardized if this policy is intentionally violated.

Scooters, 149cc and below, may be used and registered on campus provided they are registered with the DMV and meet all the motorcycle/scooter registration requirements.

Some alternative forms of transportation available to freshmen students are:

  • ZipCar (hourly or per day transportation)
  • MTS (San Diego public transit)
  • MTS Access (San Diego public transit for customers with disabilities)
  • Taxi or ride-sharing services (e.g., Uber)
  • Bicycles
  • Rides from friends with currently registered vehicles on campus

Citation Payment and Appeal Process

The University Vehicle Code contains all rules and regulations concerning parking, citations, and appeals. Citations must be paid or appealed online. If you wish to appeal your citation, follow these steps:

  1. Find your citation by entering the license plate or citation number in the search fields. After finding your citation, log into your iParq account.
  2. Enter a brief appeal in the text box provided. Images may be uploaded as supporting evidence.
  3. Submit your appeal. An emailed response will be sent within two to four weeks.

Visitors 

Guests visiting students or conducting university business on the Point Loma Campus must stop at the Welcome Center at the Lomaland Drive entrance and request a one-day visitor parking permit. Students and employees with overnight visitors must order their guest's permit online prior to their arrival. 

Parking Guide

Special parking rules apply on our different PLNU campuses. Select a campus below to review the parking guidelines set forth in the University Vehicle Code.

Bakersfield

Vehicles must adhere to posted parking signs. PLNU permits are not required.

Liberty Station Conference Center

Vehicles may not park in retail-only or hotel-only parking spaces, including parking stalls with 60 and 90-minute time limits.

Mission Valley Campus

All vehicles must be parked in designated parking space in accordance with the CVC.

Vehicles may park at 4025 or 4055 Camino del Rio South in designated spaces during the posted times. 

Point Loma Campus

Vehicles displaying a valid PERMIT A may park in any open space on campus 24-7.

Vehicles displaying a valid PERMIT B may park in WHITE spaces only, Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Vehicles displaying a valid PERMIT B may park in any available, unreserved, space on campus when one of the following conditions exist:

  • It is not 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
  • It is a university holiday.
  • It is a summer session.

Special parking rules exist in the San Diego First Church Parking Lot, where the white spaces are exclusively reserved for use by the church, and in the city lot, where the city of San Diego strictly enforces a four-hour time limit.

University Holidays 

Special parking rules apply for PERMIT B holders on the dates listed below. See 2.2.5 in the University Vehicle Code.

  • Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
  • Easter Break
  • Memorial Day
  • Fourth of July
  • Labor Day
  • Thanksgiving 
  • Winter Break

Bus Access

All buses coming to the Point Loma campus must stop at the Welcome Center at the Lomaland Drive entrance to obtain directions to the bus loading and unloading area. During the school year, buses must depart campus after unloading and return to retrieve passengers. There is NO bus parking on the Point Loma Campus.