Parking sign on the Brownsville campus parking lot Emilio Suarez / Vaquero Radio
At the start of Fall 2025, the Department of Parking and Transportation introduced virtual parking permits to UTRGV in hopes of modernizing operations and improving the student, staff and faculty experience.
Director of Parking Services Pablo Aguilar said the shift to virtual permits was designed to ease up a process that normally caused frustration for students.
Aguilar said since the transition to virtual permits led to positive feedback from students.
“I believe the most common feedback we received from students was that the process was much easier,” he said. “Students appreciated the convenience, especially not having to buy temporary permits as they used another vehicle and forgot to switch the decal, so they loved that.”
Although the implementation was successful, Aguilar said communication was one of the biggest challenges the department faced with the new virtual permits.
He added even with all the emails sent and social media outreach, some students were still unaware of the change.
According to Aguilar, there was a 2% increase in permit participation. However, it also led to an about 20% increase in parking citations for students who did not realize the new change.
“There was a citation increase early on for students and the general public, for not having their virtual permits. That went again with the communication, emails not being opened or maybe on our part not pushing enough social media,” Aguilar said.
School of Interdisciplinary Programs and Community Engagement Lecturer II Silvia Solis said when she first heard of the shift to virtual permits, she thought it was a great idea as it simplified the process for both the university and drivers.
Solis said the transition to virtual permits didn’t really affect her day-to-day routine on campus.
“I didn’t have any students complain about parking,” she said. “Like, it just kind of transitioned over pretty well.”
She added her only complaint from a faculty perspective is the lack of citations issued to students who park in faculty parking spots in the beginning of the semester.
“As faculty we’re paying a higher rate to park in a certain location and we are the ones teaching the courses, and we should have priority in those given spaces. I need to ensure that I have parking so I can get to my office and be able to be prepared to teach my course,” she said.
Solis said despite her concerns, the change to virtual permits was a great move from the Department of Parking and Transportation Services.
Vaquero Radio asked students via the UTRGV Students Facebook Group on their thoughts on the virtual permits transition.
One anonymous user commented they personally liked the change, stating they did not want to place a sticker on their windshield under the Texas sun. The same user added it may also make it easier to give parking citations for violations, making the Parking and Transportation Services job simpler.
For more information on parking permits, call 665-2738 in Edinburg, 882-7051 in Brownsville or email parking@utrgv.edu.
