License Plate Recognition (LPR) FAQS

With the use of License Plate Recognition (LPR) Software, SDSU requires a valid parking permit to be properly registered to a vehicle's license plate at all times. Vehicle license plate information is required when purchasing a permit through the Transportation Portal, one of the pay stations on campus or through the PayByPhone app.
LPR is an advanced parking technology that provides virtual permits through a vehicle's license plate instead of paper permits or plastic hangtags.

Students, faculty, staff and visitors will register their vehicle license plate information into one of the parking systems used by SDSU. The LPR software then combines this information with the individual's payment and generates a virtual permit linked to that vehicle's license plate number. 

When a vehicle parks on campus, the license plate is captured by cameras mounted on enforcement vehicles. When read, the numbers of your plate are automatically referenced against the parking database to verify a valid permit and the proper parking privileges for the location. If the license plate and vehicle information are not associated with a valid virtual permit or the vehicle is parked in an in an invalid area, then the vehicle will be subject to a citation.

LPR scans vehicles and will record the following:

  • license plate image
  • license plate number
  • license plate state
  • date
  • time
  • location

The information collected will only be referenced against the campus database for the strict purposes of parking enforcement and management. It may also be used to identify stolen or wanted vehicles as allowed by law. The enforcement rules will not change because of LPR, including the process to appeal a citation.

Collected information and records will not be available to the public nor disseminated to persons not authrized to access or use the information. To obtain a copy of the Usage and Privacy Policy, please contact Parking & Transportation Services at [email protected]. 

Information collected will be stored for no longer than 30 days.

Students

  • Students may register up to two vehicles through the Transportation Portal.
  • Students should manage and add or remove vehicles as needed.

Faculty and Staff

  • Faculty and staff may register up to five vehicles through the Aztec Parking Potal.
  • Faculty and staff should manage and add or remove vehicles as needed.

Only one vehicle is permitted under the permit at any given time on campus. If additional vehicles under the registered permit need to park on campus, an additional permit will need to be purchased to avoid a "Shared Permit" citation.

Temporary Plates

  • California issues temporary plates for new vehicles. Please enter your temporary plate when registering your vehicle with your purchased permit. Once your permanent plate is received, complete the License Plate Change Request Form to update your license plate.

Rental Vehicles

  • Rental vehicles may be registered and linked to your permit through the Transportation Portal. Once the rental vehicle is returned, please remember to remove it from your Transportation Portal account.
If you have a personalized plate or a plate with special character(s), please do not enter any spaces and special characters when entering the plate into one of the parking systems used on campus. 
Please manage your vehicles through the Transportation Portal by adding or removing vehicles as needed. It is the responsibility of the account holder to ensure vehicles are linked properly with their permit(s).
Please follow our helpful guides to add and link vehicles to purchased permits.