As lockdown restrictions begin to lift and activity increases, we would like to remind staff that parking enforcement is taking place on our campuses.
If you drive to our campuses you will therefore be required to display a permit in any University car park, in line with University Parking Regulations. It has been agreed that the suspension of parking charges will continue until Friday 31 December 2021, to allow further development of our ‘Future Ways of Working’ and associated changes to the parking permit system to support working patterns.
What does this mean for me?
- If you have a permit that shows an expiry of 31 December 2020 or 31 March 2021 this will not be replaced and will be deemed as valid until 31 December 2021. Communication on the permit system for 2022 will follow in Semester 1, in the autumn.
- If you need to park on campus and do not have a current permit you will need to apply for one – but there will be no charge.
- Parking enforcement is undertaken by the Parking Team and vehicles not displaying a valid permit may receive a parking charge notice.
Travelling to campus more sustainably
Longer-term, and post-COVID, it is clear we will need to plan for a shift to less private car use and reduced parking on our campuses, for a number of reasons. This will be in line with our Sustainability Strategy and Travel Plan, as well as Southampton City and Winchester Councils’ long-term Transport and Sustainability Strategies, which will see a move away from private car travel to greater use of public transport and alternative travel options. We also need to consider the implications post-COVID of any potential longer-term changes in the balance between campus working and working from home.
This will mean fresh thinking around private and business travel and the use of public transport as a city, as well as a University, and will involve wide consultation before any decisions are finalised.
For full details about all methods of travel to our campuses, please visit our Transport webpages.
As highlighted in previous SUSSED posts, there are a number of other projects and events beginning or continuing throughout the summer that will have an impact on available car parking spaces. The projects include:
- In-person visit/open days
- Preparatory work ahead of Jubilee Sports centre improvements (closing Jubilee Car Park) and other Capital or long term maintenance projects.
- The continuation of COVID-19 infrastructure (including the temporary teaching space installed on car parks across our campuses and the covid-19 testing facility at Avenue Campus)
If you are returning to campus we would advise leaving slightly more time in order to find a space.
It is important that you use our online booking system if you have visitors coming to campus to enable our parking team to monitor capacity. The visitor car park on Highfield Campus has significantly reduced capacity due to the above projects, so space is limited.
If you are returning to work on campus please speak to your line manager and follow our Health & Safety guidance on the return to work.
We will continue to monitor parking capacity as we move towards the start of Autumn term.
You can find more information on parking here.
