I’m an incoming student and expect I’ll be spending most of my time in Tolman Hall. I see there’s student parking in Lower Hearst Garage near there. Will that be reliable, or will the garage tend to be full? I’ll typical get there between 10AM and noon. Also, since I’m trying to find housing near campus, is there any place where I will be allowed to park my car on the street without moving it frequently? Or is 72 hours the limit for the whole area? Finally, in case I can’t find housing within walking distance of campus, where can I live that’s outside the parking boundary but still within 15 minutes’ drive? Thanks!
I would expect the garage to be full by then. Berkeley has system of parking permits by zone, Unless you have one (and you have to be a resident of the zone to get one), you are going to be limited (in general) to 2 hours during the applicable daytime period. El Cerrito is easily within a 15-minute drive, but you’re still not going to be able to park. Learn to use the bus (AC Transit) and BART. Your Cal ID gives you unlimited bus access and you can load cash value on the card to use BART. A bicycle will be a better friend to you than a car.
sigh I’m unable to use a bike. Thanks for being the umpteenth person to suggest that, though. If I want reliability, it seems my best bet is to be close enough to walk. I trust buses more as a backup plan than a necessity.
AC Transit is actually pretty good for getting to downtown Berkeley from north and south. The Downtown Berkeley BART station is maybe 7 blocks from Tolman. There is a free Cal shuttle from the BART and downtown bus stops that would drop you pretty much right outside Tolman on Hearst. Living within walking distance will be expensive, especially there on the north side, since it is a very desirable area that borders on/overlaps with the Gourmet Ghetto. My kid [a grad student] lives about 14 blocks from the NW corner of campus [and mainly works near the main library, which adds some distance] and pays over $2000 a month for a very small 1 BR in an old Berkeley brown shingle – and is happy to have it. Be prepared for sticker shock. Ask more questions if you like. PM me if you want. 40+ year resident [came for law school and never left].
From my experience using the Lower Hearst Garage for 3 years, 9:30AM is the latest you can go, and you will still likely hand the key to a guard who will move your car around during the day because the cars are already full in normal spots and you must pick up your key before 6pm.
You will have to live outside of 2-mile radius in order to obtain a parking pass too - defined by west of Sacramento St., north of Cedar St., and south of Ashby Ave.
You cannot use any of the school parking lot as a garage, so finding a separate storage that is usually ~$100/month is a separate fee.
I’m another “umpteenth person” to say that parking situation around UCB campus is bad, very bad.
If you absolutely have to have a car, search Craigslist for a rental parking spot (e.g. in someone’s driveway/garage). They are rare, but do exist. You may be lucky.