After delays caused by technological issues with the transition to a new parking permit system, students will be able to begin purchasing parking permits July 25.
MU Parking and Transportation Director Michael Sokoff said in an email that the delay was caused by technical issues with the new software.
“There were some technology communication issues between the MU system and the Tiger Park system,” Sokoff said in the email. “Those have been resolved and the systems are now able to communicate with each other as they should.”
Now that the complication has been resolved, graduate students will be able to purchase permits beginning July 25, seniors can access the system on July 29, and permits become available to juniors, sophomores and freshmen on Aug. 1. Permits can be purchased on the [Office of Parking and Transportation’s website](http://parking.missouri.edu).
In March, the Office of Parking and Transportation announced upgrades to MU’s parking permit system. Called Tiger Park, the new electronic system aims to streamline the way parking permits are purchased and enforced and how violations are paid for.
Had the delays not occurred, permits would have already been available to graduate students, and juniors would have had a chance to purchase permits before underclassmen.
Tiger Park, which operates with software called NuPark, will eliminate the need for physical parking passes and allow students to pay parking tickets online. The new system will rely on camera-mounted vehicles to check garages and lots and compare license plate numbers against the Office of Parking and Transportation’s permit data.
Instead of receiving paper tickets, students who commit parking violations will have tickets sent to their student emails with the time, date and specific offense listed. They will also receive two photos: one of their license plate and one of the context of the violation.
When students receive the emails, the NuPark software will allow them to pay the tickets online with a credit card.
Despite setbacks during installation, Sokoff said that the $250,000 budget for NuPark has not been affected. Funding has been budgeted over several years by the Office of Parking and Transportation, which does not receive money from the state or the university.
According to [previous Maneater reporting](https://www.themaneater.com/stories/2016/4/20/parking-and-transportation-office-use-paperless-pa/), the new system is expected to prompt a 5 to 10 percent increase in permit sales and add $66,000 to $132,000 of new revenue to the Office of Parking and Transportation. NuPark will also provide more accurate, real-time data about parking availability in each garage and lot that will help the Office Parking and Transportation operate more efficiently.
_Edited by Claire Mitzel | cmitzel@themaneater.com_