By Bella Garcia
As students return for the Fall 2025 semester, the parking and transportation department has rolled out several parking program changes–most notably, a limit on the number of vehicles allowed on students’ permits.
Parking and Transportation Services notified students via email of the parking policy updates in effect for the 2025-26 academic year, as university officials prepare for the return of thousands of vehicles on campus.
“Each year we review our programs and make the updates that are relevant…we continue to try to review and improve our programs any way that we can, based on available technology,” Chad Keller, public relations and communications specialist, said.
The department’s most substantial change for many students was a reduction of the number of vehicles authorized to be linked to a student’s permit, from two cars to one.
Keller said the decision is a result of ongoing student confusion regarding whether permit sharing is allowed despite repeated communication stating parking permits are non-transferable.
“Removing that extra spot made it pretty hard to misunderstand that there was only one spot for a permit and only one car that can go in there,” Keller said.
According to Keller, the department regularly faces student citation appeals inextricably linked to prohibited permit sharing.
“If students never came to our office and said, ‘I’m getting ripped off by other students, I have these citations I can’t pay for, they’re not mine,’ we probably would never have this conversation,” Keller said. “But because this is an ongoing problem, a change had to be made.”
Fourth-year business management major Cristian Martinez believes the parking change is a step backward in accessibility and student support by directly contradicting the mission-driven values that CSULB promotes.
“[The one-vehicle policy] does not promote inclusion, ease of access, or student success. It created barriers. It complicates transportation. It penalizes flexibility, and it sends a discouraging message to students that convenience and access are being restricted rather than improved,” Martinez said in an email to Parking and Transportation Services and Associated Students, Inc.
The Parking and Transportation Advisory Committee, a subcommittee of the President’s Commission on Sustainability, previously existed to provide multiple transportation options, manage parking demand and encourage the use of sustainable transportation to provide access to the university, but was discontinued due to lack of student attendance.
The Alternative Transportation Committee exists today as a subcommittee of the PCS, primarily dealing with transportation solutions to reduce carbon emissions from drive-alone commutes to campus.
The committee, which welcomes student representatives, staff and faculty, was not consulted in the updated parking program changes. Keller explained the department reserves consultation with the committee and student organizations for substantial updates, including fee increases.
“Not every change is feasible to run by a committee,” Keller said.
Associate Vice President of Student Affairs and Dean of Students Jeffrey Klaus acknowledged the policy change takes away from the flexibility that students valued and raises questions about whether student perspectives were adequately considered.
“We pride ourselves as an institution on shared governance, which is why [consulting student groups] is such an important piece; if it was neglected,” Klaus said.
What Else is New?
Other key changes to the parking program include a one-year fee freeze, the return of an overflow parking lot and the introduction of discounted bus passes on the GoBeach app.
Department officials said the parking program changes are updates to the system to reflect the existing policy rather than a change of policy.
Keller suggested that the best place to express concerns regarding parking as a student is to Associated Students, Inc.
“They are the students’ voices on campus,” Keller said. “ASI gets invitations to all these meetings, and they have voting positions reserved for them on these committees. At these meetings, they can advocate (and vote) for their students’ interests and speak for them.”
