This time of the year is particularly stressful for college students as Christmas exams are just around the corner. With an increase in students now commuting to college due to the accommodation shortages and prices, there is a heightened demand for parking spaces.
Parking has become an issue across most colleges as the lack of available spots, high costs of parking, and the time spent searching for a space have led to anxiety, missed classes, and increased daily travel times.
Colleges with a particular strain include South East Technological University (SETU) and University College Dublin (UCD).
Erin Foley, student union president at SETU told Irish Country Living that students are forced to park in local estates where they are getting clamped regularly. With only a few bus services serving the campus, it can be “hit or miss on whether they show up,” she says. This has resulted in buses arriving onto campus crammed.
The situation is heightened in UCD with the removal of spaces due to ongoing capital projects. As a result, on 14 October, UCD’s Students’ Union released a video calling on the estate to refund students who were not satisfied with the current parking service because they sold the same amount of permits this year, although fewer spaces are available.
“The issue is that UCD got rid of two car parks, losing roughly 400 spaces. They released the same number of parking permits and allowed however many people to buy them as they wished.
“Students ended up paying the same money for a service that they got last year, which wasn’t the same this year. The student union has successfully advocated that the university begin a refund facility for those who feel the services aren’t up to standard,” says Michael Roche, students’ union president.
Students who are commuting to college are facing massive issues as they receive data that tells them all car parks are full by 8am. This means many have to get on campus hours earlier than their lectures begin, just to secure a spot.
“Commuting is hard enough for people without having to come into college four hours before the start of your first lecture. I have to walk through the car park where I get off my bus, I see students are sleeping in their cars every morning, because they are on campus from 6am or 7am purely because they have to get a space,” Michael adds.
The demand for parking spaces across UCD’s campus has ramped up due to construction work on new student accommodation, which has closed one of the permit parking areas. Despite holding a valid permit, students are not guaranteed parking. A standard permit costs €100 for the autumn and spring semesters, meaning €50 per semester.
Many students have criticised the university for issuing more permits than there are spaces available, arguing that UCD is profiting while leaving permit holders without reliable access to parking.
According to An Coimisiún Pleanála and UCD, the university’s sustainable transport strategy will continue to reduce the long-term number of spaces on campus. At present, the parking spaces accessible to the general student and staff population are divided into the following categories:
Disabled spaces: 124.Permit spaces: 2,503.Standard pay and display spaces: 159.Premium pay and display spaces: 65.EV charging: 36.Total number: 2,887.Parking operates on a first-come, first-served basis in UCD during the core academic year, September to May. The university states that planning regulations cap the maximum number of parking spaces at 3,600, roughly 700 more than currently available (2,887), yet still far short of meeting the demand.
Recent data indicates that over 30,000 students and staff commute to UCD daily. Out of this, it is said that 20% travel by car, the others use bikes, walking and public transport. That means roughly 6,000 people are driving to the college every day, competing for fewer than 3,000 spaces.
The students’ union would like to see better policing of who is getting a parking permit, which the university has been open to doing. It is difficult to know what the best practice of monitoring this would be. A plan for an underground car park is underway but it is expected to take up to five years.
Irish Country Living reached out to UCD for a comment on the parking challenges currently facing students but no reply was received at the time of going to print.
Impact on students
Jessica Brogan, third year animal
science student, Kilteel, Co Kildare
Jessica Brogan, UCD student.
“I have been commuting by car every day to college since 2022. This entails the N7 and M50 each day and as most people know, they are carnage from 7am-10am, and 3.30/4pm-6pm. To avoid traffic, I leave my house at 6.30am, and if I leave even 20 minutes later, I will add a significant amount of time to my journey.
I have noticed a big change over the last few years in regard to the demand for parking at UCD.
When I started in 2022, sometimes I would wait out the traffic and come in at 10am/11am and I’d have no issue finding parking. However, this isn’t the case anymore. I notice when I arrive on campus at 7am, the spaces are nearly full.
When I get to college, I always find myself driving laps of the campus looking for parking, usually stressed as I am running late for a lab or even on occasion, I miss them as I simply couldn’t find parking. “A lot of students like myself have no choice but to commute in every day. UCD aren’t considering all cases. They either push for living on campus or push for taking public transport, when in reality, for those living in the countryside, it is not an easy option. I have no issue paying for a parking space if I am guaranteed one.
“Leading up to exams, I find it particularly hard. The mornings and evenings are darker, the roads are more dangerous due to the winter weather and overall, the traffic worsens along with the chances of getting a parking space.”
Rachel Maguire, final year animal
science, Co Westmeath
Rachel Maguire,
“This is my first year living in Dublin; the last three years I have commuted. Before this year, I would have left my house at around 6am to be up in UCD for after 7am.
“This year, I am only about 10 minutes drive from campus, but I need to be in before 8.20am to get parking.
“The limit of car parking spaces is a nightmare. You might not have any lectures until 11am but will still have to arrive on campus before 9am, otherwise, you could be over an hour looking for a spot. That might also lead to you missing your lecture.
“I think UCD should seek investment in a multi-storey car park, where they can supply a significant number of additional car parking spots on a smaller proportion of land.
“I don’t believe it’s fair to give out thousands of parking permits to people when the majority of them are not guaranteed parking every day.
“The campus is going to be like a zoo over the next few weeks, between the parking situation and the library leading up to Christmas exams, but all in all we’ll have to persevere.”
This time of the year is particularly stressful for college students as Christmas exams are just around the corner. With an increase in students now commuting to college due to the accommodation shortages and prices, there is a heightened demand for parking spaces.
Parking has become an issue across most colleges as the lack of available spots, high costs of parking, and the time spent searching for a space have led to anxiety, missed classes, and increased daily travel times.
Colleges with a particular strain include South East Technological University (SETU) and University College Dublin (UCD).
Erin Foley, student union president at SETU told Irish Country Living that students are forced to park in local estates where they are getting clamped regularly. With only a few bus services serving the campus, it can be “hit or miss on whether they show up,” she says. This has resulted in buses arriving onto campus crammed.
The situation is heightened in UCD with the removal of spaces due to ongoing capital projects. As a result, on 14 October, UCD’s Students’ Union released a video calling on the estate to refund students who were not satisfied with the current parking service because they sold the same amount of permits this year, although fewer spaces are available.
“The issue is that UCD got rid of two car parks, losing roughly 400 spaces. They released the same number of parking permits and allowed however many people to buy them as they wished.
“Students ended up paying the same money for a service that they got last year, which wasn’t the same this year. The student union has successfully advocated that the university begin a refund facility for those who feel the services aren’t up to standard,” says Michael Roche, students’ union president.
Students who are commuting to college are facing massive issues as they receive data that tells them all car parks are full by 8am. This means many have to get on campus hours earlier than their lectures begin, just to secure a spot.
“Commuting is hard enough for people without having to come into college four hours before the start of your first lecture. I have to walk through the car park where I get off my bus, I see students are sleeping in their cars every morning, because they are on campus from 6am or 7am purely because they have to get a space,” Michael adds.
The demand for parking spaces across UCD’s campus has ramped up due to construction work on new student accommodation, which has closed one of the permit parking areas. Despite holding a valid permit, students are not guaranteed parking. A standard permit costs €100 for the autumn and spring semesters, meaning €50 per semester.
Many students have criticised the university for issuing more permits than there are spaces available, arguing that UCD is profiting while leaving permit holders without reliable access to parking.
According to An Coimisiún Pleanála and UCD, the university’s sustainable transport strategy will continue to reduce the long-term number of spaces on campus. At present, the parking spaces accessible to the general student and staff population are divided into the following categories:
Disabled spaces: 124.Permit spaces: 2,503.Standard pay and display spaces: 159.Premium pay and display spaces: 65.EV charging: 36.Total number: 2,887.Parking operates on a first-come, first-served basis in UCD during the core academic year, September to May. The university states that planning regulations cap the maximum number of parking spaces at 3,600, roughly 700 more than currently available (2,887), yet still far short of meeting the demand.
Recent data indicates that over 30,000 students and staff commute to UCD daily. Out of this, it is said that 20% travel by car, the others use bikes, walking and public transport. That means roughly 6,000 people are driving to the college every day, competing for fewer than 3,000 spaces.
The students’ union would like to see better policing of who is getting a parking permit, which the university has been open to doing. It is difficult to know what the best practice of monitoring this would be. A plan for an underground car park is underway but it is expected to take up to five years.
Irish Country Living reached out to UCD for a comment on the parking challenges currently facing students but no reply was received at the time of going to print.
Impact on students
Jessica Brogan, third year animal
science student, Kilteel, Co Kildare
Jessica Brogan, UCD student.
“I have been commuting by car every day to college since 2022. This entails the N7 and M50 each day and as most people know, they are carnage from 7am-10am, and 3.30/4pm-6pm. To avoid traffic, I leave my house at 6.30am, and if I leave even 20 minutes later, I will add a significant amount of time to my journey.
I have noticed a big change over the last few years in regard to the demand for parking at UCD.
When I started in 2022, sometimes I would wait out the traffic and come in at 10am/11am and I’d have no issue finding parking. However, this isn’t the case anymore. I notice when I arrive on campus at 7am, the spaces are nearly full.
When I get to college, I always find myself driving laps of the campus looking for parking, usually stressed as I am running late for a lab or even on occasion, I miss them as I simply couldn’t find parking. “A lot of students like myself have no choice but to commute in every day. UCD aren’t considering all cases. They either push for living on campus or push for taking public transport, when in reality, for those living in the countryside, it is not an easy option. I have no issue paying for a parking space if I am guaranteed one.
“Leading up to exams, I find it particularly hard. The mornings and evenings are darker, the roads are more dangerous due to the winter weather and overall, the traffic worsens along with the chances of getting a parking space.”
Rachel Maguire, final year animal
science, Co Westmeath
Rachel Maguire,
“This is my first year living in Dublin; the last three years I have commuted. Before this year, I would have left my house at around 6am to be up in UCD for after 7am.
“This year, I am only about 10 minutes drive from campus, but I need to be in before 8.20am to get parking.
“The limit of car parking spaces is a nightmare. You might not have any lectures until 11am but will still have to arrive on campus before 9am, otherwise, you could be over an hour looking for a spot. That might also lead to you missing your lecture.
“I think UCD should seek investment in a multi-storey car park, where they can supply a significant number of additional car parking spots on a smaller proportion of land.
“I don’t believe it’s fair to give out thousands of parking permits to people when the majority of them are not guaranteed parking every day.
“The campus is going to be like a zoo over the next few weeks, between the parking situation and the library leading up to Christmas exams, but all in all we’ll have to persevere.”
SHARING OPTIONS