Campus Parking and Traffic Regulations

Providing adequate parking facilities and the proper supervision of campus traffic is a major activity on university campuses throughout the United States. This is especially true at institutions like Southern Connecticut State University, where a large part of the student body commutes daily.

"Fitch Street garage at SCSU"

 

To protect students and visitors to the university from automobile accidents, as well as to provide security for motor vehicles parked on the campus, the following rules and regulations must be observed. Failure to comply may lead to the issuance of a university parking ticket and/or a state motor vehicle infraction, the towing of the vehicle at the owner's expense, and when warranted, a disciplinary action by the university.

The university reserves the right to tow or impound any vehicle that is illegally parked or parked in a way that constitutes a serious hazard, impedes vehicle or pedestrian movements, or impairs the operation of emergency equipment and/or the making of repairs. Owners will be required to pay all costs involved in removing and impounding vehicles. 

In a spirit of cooperation with the New Haven and Hamden communities, students are asked not to park their vehicles on city streets in residential areas adjacent to the campus.

Vehicle Registration

All vehicles operated or parked on campus at any time must properly display an SCSU parking decal. Vehicle owners and operators must register their vehicles at the University Police Department. 
   
Persons seeking a decal must present a current and VALID STUDENT ID card (Hoot Loot card). Students must know the make, model, year, color and license plate of their vehicle.

   
Any false or incorrect information given at the time of registration will automatically render the decal void. 

All faculty and staff shall be issued one unaffixed parking decal that must be displayed on the rearview mirror with the printing facing the windshield. A decal that is lost or stolen must be reported to University Police immediately to prevent misuse of this decal.  

The registration for vehicles other than faculty and staff is complete only after the decal is permanently affixed inside the driver's side of the front windshield.

A parking decal is no guarantee of a parking space. Each vehicle operator is responsible for finding a legal parking space. Lack of space is not a valid excuse for violating any parking regulation. 

Decals must be removed from vehicles that are being sold or no longer used on the SCSU campus. Outdated parking decals also should be removed when a new decal is issued. Any transfer, exchange, sale, misuse, or reproduction of a decal is unauthorized. All violators will have their decals removed and their vehicles towed at their own expense. 

Overnight visitor parking for the residence halls is available in unrestricted areas between 6 p.m. and 7 a.m. Passes must be obtained form the hall director and displayed in the vehicle dashboard.  

When inviting a guest or guests to campus, faculty and staff should make arrangements for parking and passes in advance with the University Police Department.

A special parking permit for faculty, staff, and students who have temporary disabilities is available from the University Police Department. The applicant must first provide written verification of disability status to the university physician in Granoff Hall, who will determine the extent of the disability and the expected period of disability.

Traffic and Parking Regulations

Residence hall and commuting students must park their vehicles only in designated lots. All student parking areas are designated for specific groups indicated below. Only vehicles with appropriate decals are permitted in these areas.

Commuter Students

Lots #3, #8, #9. Also, the Wintergreen Avenue and West Campus parking garages and Levels 2, 3, and 4 of the Fitch Street parking garage. Students may not park in faculty/staff areas.

A police officer talking to the driver in a stopped vehicle

Faculty, Staff, and Special Decal Holders

The Wintergreen Garage, level #1 of the Fitch Street Garage; rows 2 and 3 of the Main Faculty/Staff Lot (Engleman Hall); Lots #5, #12 and #12B.  

Faculty and staff are allowed to park in all levels of the Wintergreen Avenue, West Campus and Fitch Street garages.

Graduate Students

Lot #1, behind the Fitch Street Garage between 7 a.m.-11 p.m. and in Lots #5, #12 and #12B between 4:30 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. and all day at Wintergreen and West Campus Garages.
Graduate students are prohibited from using SCSU parking facilities behind Davis Hall / Clinic only.

Other Regulations

  • Clinic guests must obtain a special clinic pass and display it on the dashboard. 
  • Motorcycles must be parked in parking areas designated "Motorcycle Parking."
  • A speed limit of 10 miles per hour will be enforced on all campus roadways and parking lots. 
  • Pedestrians have the right-of-way at all times. 
  • Approved areas for picking up or discharging passengers are inside the main entrance off Fitch Street and the roadway and turn-around area leading to Engleman Hall off Crescent Street. Drivers must remain with their vehicles. 
  • Drivers who need to pick up or deliver heavy educational materials at Earl Hall may park at the rear of this building for a maximum of 15 minutes (please notify the gate attendant). 
  • Yellow curb areas are designated as prohibited parking areas, the same as those areas that have "No Parking" signs. 
  • Students are responsible for informing their guests of university parking regulations. 
  • The university reserves the right to close temporarily a parking area for repairs or for special events.  
  • No vehicles are to be parked on the campus between the hours of 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. unless prior arrangements are made with the University Police Department. Faculty, staff, and non-residence hall students who wish to leave their vehicles on campus overnight while they attend a conference or participate in a university-sponsored trip must park their vehicles in the first two (2) rows closest to
  • Fitch Street in Lot #2. 
  • Neither SCSU nor any of its employees assumes responsibility or liability for loss from theft or damage to cars parked in university parking lots. 

Parking Tickets and State Motor Vehicle Infractions

Vehicles violating the following regulations will be issued a university parking ticket and/or a state motor vehicle infraction and towed at the owners' expense:

  • Parking within 10 feet of a hydrant 
  • Double parking 
  • Blocking an intersection, crosswalk, stop sign, driveway, or service area 
  • Parking on a grassy area 
  • Parking on restricted areas 
  • Overnight parking in time-restricted areas 
  • Parking outside of stall lines 
  • Triple line parking 
  • Failure to display current parking decal 
  • Parking in a fire lane 
  • Parking in an area designated by the state for people with disabilities without a Department of Transportation permit or in a special parking (medical) area without an SCSU permit 
  • Disobeying a campus police officer's instructions 
  • Connecticut motor vehicle laws 

The upper-level of Lot #12 adjacent to Seabury Hall is reserved for parking for people with disabilities only.

Thirty-minute parking in front of the Adanti Student Center will be strictly enforced; tagging and towing will be done.  Faculty and staff hosting special functions that require extended parking in this area will submit a request to the Police Department for approval.

Enforcement

University fines for traffic and parking violations are $25, and fines for parking in fire lanes $50 and in areas designated by the state of Connecticut for people with disabilities are $100 for each infraction.  Failure to display current decal $15

Fines must be paid at the Business Office in the Wintergreen building, within 14 days of the date the ticket was issued. Checks must be made payable to Southern Connecticut State University. Failure to make payment within the required time will result in a doubling of the fine. Also, a hold will be placed on a student's records who fails to pay the amount owed.

All fines collected for the violation of campus parking and traffic regulations are placed in a scholarship fund to assist students at the university.

State of Connecticut infractions for improper parking (14-251) are $60, and parking in a space designated for blind persons or persons with disabilities (14-253a) are $116 for each infraction. These fines are paid directly to the following address:

Centralized Infractions Bureau
P.O. Box 5044
Hartford, CT 06102-5044

Traffic and Parking Appeals Committee

The Traffic and Parking Appeals Committee hears appeals of penalties assessed for parking or traffic violations. Anyone may appeal a university parking ticket within 14 calendar days of the date of issuance by completing an appeals form available in the University Police Department. Filing the appeals form will suspend the penalty for the student, faculty, or staff member until disposition of the appeal is made by the committee. Following its decision, the committee will notify both the appellant and the University Police Department in writing of its decision.
  
To see the map of the campus, including parking spots, click here.