Parking permits
Do I need a permit to park on campus?
Yes. Permits are sold by semester or year in MyPorter, and your license plate is the permit — enforcement reads plates, so there is no hangtag (transportation & parking).
What permit zones are there?
Resident (your assigned lot), Commuter (the perimeter lots, plus the Founders Ramp after 4 p.m.), Evening (anywhere after 4 p.m.), and a limited number of Core permits for the central lots by lottery.
Should a first-year student bring a car?
You can, but first-year residents are generally not eligible for Core permits. The Porter Loop and a bike cover almost everything on campus and in town.
What gets people ticketed most?
Parking outside your zone. Permit charges and citations post to your student account; dispute a citation with Parking, not the Bursar (understanding your bill).
How does accessible parking work?
Students and employees need a valid state placard or plate plus a Porter permit. After an injury, Transportation & Parking issues a temporary accessible permit with a provider’s note (accessible parking).
Where can I charge an electric car?
At the Depot District garage (including a DC fast charger), the North Campus lot and two surface lots. Charging is billed per kWh at cost to your Porter Card, with a four-hour limit at Level 2 stations during business hours (EV charging).
The Porter Loop and buses
What is the Porter Loop?
The fare-free campus shuttle. The Gold route connects North Campus, the residence halls, the academic core and downtown; the Green route runs from the perimeter lots to the core.
How often does the Loop run?
Every 12–15 minutes on weekdays from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and every 30 minutes on the reduced evening and Saturday schedule. Live locations are on the shuttle tracker and the screens at each stop.
Can I ride the city bus?
Yes, free. Tap or show your Porter Card on any Porter Falls Transit fixed route; the pass is included in student fees with nothing to activate (free city bus pass).
How do I get to Lake City or the Cities?
Take the regional coach from the Founders Union transit bay — about 40 minutes east to Lake City and 75 minutes west to the Cities. Intercity fares are your own cost.
Is there a shuttle home for breaks?
Yes. Subsidized break shuttles run to the regional airport and the intercity station in the Cities around Thanksgiving, winter and spring break and the end of the year; reserve about a month ahead (break travel shuttles).
Is there accessible transportation?
A door-to-door paratransit shuttle on campus books one business day ahead through the accessibility office (accessible shuttle booking).
Bikes, walking and getting around at night
Should I register my bike?
Yes — it is free and takes about two minutes, online or at Campus Safety in Millwright Hall. A registered serial number is how a recovered bike gets back to you (bike registration).
Is there bike share?
Yes: 120 bikes at nine stations, checked out with a Porter Card or a day pass and returned to any station (bike share).
Where can I keep my bike in winter?
In the covered, card-access bike room in the Founders Ramp. Registered bikes park free at racks campus-wide.
Where do I get a bike fixed?
At the bike repair shop or the self-service repair stations around campus.
How long does it take to walk across campus?
About 15 minutes between the far corners. Main paths are cleared and lit, and the accessible-route map flags the step-free options.
What is SafeRide?
A request-based evening van, 6 p.m.–2 a.m., anywhere within the campus boundary and two blocks beyond. Book it in the ParkPorter app; it is a safety service, not a taxi, so waits vary on busy nights.
Can someone walk me to my car?
Yes. The safety escort service sends a trained student officer on foot or an officer in a vehicle, dusk to dawn during the semester, no reason required. Call Campus Safety at (715) 555–0191 or request it in MyPorter (safety escort).
My car will not start. Who can help?
Campus Safety offers free vehicle assists — jump-starts, lockouts and air (Campus Safety & police).
Winter, visitors and events
What are the winter parking rules?
From November 15 to April 1, overnight parking from 2 to 6 a.m. is banned in surface lots during a declared snow event so plows can clear them. Garages are never part of an emergency clearance (winter parking rules).
How will I know a snow emergency has been declared?
An alert goes to your phone and email through the same MyPorter channel as closures, with signage on campus. Cars left behind are ticketed and towed at the owner’s cost, usually to the Green Lot.
Where do visitors park?
At meters near the Depot and Founders Union, in the visitor pay lot by the Welcome Center, or with a daily visitor permit from the parking portal. Short stays can be paid in the ParkPorter app (visitor parking).
Where do I park for a campus tour or Preview Day?
In Lot D next to the Welcome Center. Preview Day visitor passes are emailed with your confirmation (Ironclad Preview Days).
Where do guests park for commencement?
Parking is free in all campus lots on commencement day, and the Porter Loop runs an expanded route from the perimeter lots to the Ironclad Fieldhouse doors.
Fictional information
UW–Porter Falls is a work of parody. The permits, lots, shuttle routes and towing rules here belong to a fictional university in a fictional town; there is no permit to buy and no Porter Loop to catch.