Question: How do I register for CAP?
Answer: Good news! For most CAP participants, the registration is online and you can do it on your own. It will be available beginning July 15th and we will distribute the website URL before that time.

Question: I won’t be here between July 15 and August 15. What should I do?
Answer: If you give your parking coordinator all the information she or he will need, they can still do it for you. It is your responsibility to make sure it gets done.

Question: How will I get my CAP packet?
Answer: If you are a Park & Rider, use the Triangle Transit bus, or register with Local Transit, Biking or Walking as your primary commute mode, it will be mailed to the address you give when you register. So please pay close attention to this point. If you are in a vanpool or you carpool, you will still need to come in to the correct Transportation office (DPS or Hospital).

Question: What’s with the two new decals, Park & Ride and CAP?
Answer: Beginning in the 10-11 academic year, only those who choose Park & Ride as their primary mode will get a UNC Park & Ride decal. It will allow you to park in the 5 UNC Park & Rides daily instead of once a month or once a semester and when used with assigned 1-day permits, will allow parking in S11 once a month (permanent staff) or once a semester (students). Those who choose any primary commute except for Park & Ride will receive a CAP decal. This includes Local Transit, Triangle Transit, PX Bus, Vanpool, Carpool, Bike or Walk. All will receive a CAP decal and all the CAP benefits as they are outlined above. The number on this CAP decal matches the number on any individually assigned 1-day hang tag permits received. When used together with the hang tag, it insures you will not get a ticket using the once per month or once per semester hang tag.

Question: Why can’t we just have the Park & Ride decal to use whenever we don’t take the bus or vanpool, as in the past?
Answer: CAP was never meant to subsidize multiple commute modes. Originally, CAP was generally equated with Park & Ride by those inside DPS as well as CAP participants. Triangle Transit users and vanpool riders received less assistance. With the growth of the CAP program, the greater emphasis on our regional partnerships and the increased investment by DPS, in commuting methods other than Park & Ride, the time has come to update the way we conduct CAP to insure we can keep the program healthy and viable going forward.

Question: I still don’t get it. Do I need anything to park at a park and ride lot?
Answer: As long as you chose Park & Ride as your primary commute mode, you may use any Town or University Park & Ride on a daily basis. They are all first come first served. The 4 Town park & ride lots do not require any sort of decal. The 5 University park & ride lots require a UNC Park & Ride decal for daily use. If you picked a commute mode other than Park & Ride when you joined CAP, you can use them once a month as long as your CAP decal is affixed to your windshield and you display that month’s occasional use hang tag. These park and ride lots are:

• Chatham Park and Ride Lot
• Franklin St. Park and Ride Lot
• Friday Center Park and Ride Lot
• Hwy 54 Lot
• CAP-designated area of 725 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. (Sheps Center) Lot

Question: What if I can’t find a space in my park & ride?
Answer: There are no assigned spaces in the park & rides – Town or UNC. They are all first come – first served. They are most crowded at the beginning of each semester, so that is a bad time to make permanent decisions. Once things have calmed down, take an hour or so one day and check them out. Invest a little time in finding out where they are. Once you have a better feel, decide which one you’d like to use most of the time. On days when you are later than normal, if you expect there might not be space at “your” lot, then save yourself the stress. Be smart. Drive directly to another lot.

Question: What happens if I need to park more than once a month on campus?
Answer: Hourly parking is available on campus at the Ramshead Deck. on Ridge Road for $1.50 per hour. You may purchase One-Day permits for S-11 Zone for $2.50 at the Department of Public Safety (University) or the Hospital Transportation Office (Hospital)

Question: What if I use up all my 1-day occasional use hang tags?
Answer: As long as they are available, you may purchase an additional 1-day hang tag for S11 Zone from the Department of Public Safety or the Hospital Transportation Office for $2.50 per day. This must be done in person.

Question: I have more than one vehicle that I drive at different times, can I get another decal to switch back and forth?
Answer: If you have more than one vehicle and would like additional CAP decals, please email parking@unc.edu.  Include your name, PID number, the CAP number on the decal you already have, license number, make, and model of the additional vehicle(s), and mailing address. 

Question: Can I take the Triangle Transit bus from one of the UNC Park & Rides for free?
Answer: No. DPS pays Chapel Hill Transit to provide service from the park & ride lots surrounding the University. Let them know how they are doing by calling their customer service line or emailing them, and let us know too. The regional transit buses were never meant to provide local transit trips from the park & rides near UNC to campus and back. DPS invests in free regional transit to support permanent employees and commuting student who live along regional bus lines and outside Chapel Hill and Carrboro.

Question: What if I need the annual bus pass or to get the $20 vanpool subsidy, but also want to be able to park & ride more than my occasional use permits will allow?
Answer: UNC still subsidizes free, frequent transit to 4 Town Park & Rides. If you want to be able to use the additional 5 UNC Park & Rides whenever you want, then you may purchase a Park & Ride decal for $60 at the Department of Public Safety (University) or Hospital Transportation Office (for Hospital staff). You may do this after you have obtained the CAP packet for your primary commute mode. This must be done in person. It is a one-time charge and it may be payroll deducted

Question: What if I pick Park & Ride as my primary mode, but still want to be able to get some kind of discount for riding the bus?
Answer: Well,  the University subsidizes  the local transit system so that it is free at boarding . You may purchase ticket books for Triangle Transit at a discounted rate from the Triangle Transit website. Once we are assured that the PX bus will continue, we are working with Chapel Hill Transit to create the same sort of arrangement for Chatham PX riders.

Question: If I just ride my bike to campus or if I just walk, do I need to register for CAP?
Answer: No, you do not need to register for CAP. But we encourage you to do so. Biking and walking are valued transportation alternatives, and you will receive all the CAP benefits mentioned on the other parts of the site. Please do not forget that it is mandatory to register your bicycle.

Question: What if I have to leave CAP now?
Answer: We hope you continue to find value in the program. But if your particular set of circumstances means that leaving it is the best choice for you, you'll find that you do not have to be in CAP to enjoy the benefits of our commitment to alternative transportation and of the work we do with our transportation partnerships throughout the region. We hope you will take advantage of these features!

You'll still have:

• Free-at-boarding Chapel Hill Transit system providing service within the Chapel Hill/Carrboro Town limits
• Four free Town park & ride lots served by Chapel Hill Transit available for your use on a daily basis
• Free Zimride ridematching for one-time trips or daily classes
• Access to the free GoTriangle.org Trip Planner, helping you find out how to get anywhere you need to go without a car 
• The Triangle Transit Emergency Ride Home program – available on any day you use an alternative commute – including biking. Don’t forget to register.
• P.A.R.T. has it’s own Emergency Ride Home program too
• Students have the free RedefineTravel.org website
• Access to UNC’s Zipcar carsharing program
• Vanpooling with P.A.R.T. or Triangle Transit is a great deal, even without the $20 per month CAP subsidy. It may be for you.

UNC Employee Commuter Alternatives Program

UNC Student Commuter Alternatives Program