parking

350 Red Top Parking Meters in the Central Business District Now “for the exclusive use of persons with disabilities”

By Prince Of Petworth

parking meter

From DDOT:

“The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) will begin the new Red Top Meter Program Monday, May 8, 2017.

Beginning next week Red Top Meters will be designated for the exclusive use of persons with disabilities with qualified placards or license plates.

Red Top Meters are parking meters with distinctive red tops located in the Central Business District (CBD). The CBD includes areas south of Massachusetts Avenue, east of 23rd Street NW, west of 2nd Street NE and north of D Street SE.

There are 350 Red Top metered on-street parking spaces in the CBD. All Red Top Meter users must pay for the reserved spaces, but the meters allow additional time to park (up to 4 hours). The fine for parking at a Red Top Meter without a placard is $250. (more…)

Parking Meters coming to the National Mall

By Prince Of Petworth

parking meters
Photo by PoPville flickr user Mr.TinDC

From the National Parks Service:

“The National Park Service has awarded a contract to Parkeon, USA, to install parking meters on streets and parking areas on the National Mall. Installation of the 90 multi-space pay stations will begin on or about May 1, with operation and enforcement of the meters scheduled for June 12. The new metered parking will create more frequent turnover of limited parking spaces; encourage the use of public transit; and provide revenue to create and improve affordable visitor transportation.

Parking costs under the new metered system will be $2 per hour, and will be in effect from 7 a.m. – 8 p.m. daily (including weekends and holidays). Pay stations will accept credit cards and debit cards; payment can also be made via the Parkmobile app or website. The District of Columbia’s Department of Public Works parking enforcement officers will enforce the meters. (more…)

“What needs to be done to stop street sweeping / Ward 1 parking only on my street?”

By Prince Of Petworth

street-sweeping-no parking

“Dear PoPville,

I would like to know what needs to be done to stop street sweeping / Ward 1 parking only on my street?

The street sweeping / Ward 1 parking only does not allow my friends, family and medical personnel to visit or conduct business on Mondays and Tuesdays in my area.

Im located between New Hampshire Avenue and Georgia Avenue with several elderly, handicap, retired and working class people who keep the front of their homes clear of trash and some neighbors request other neighbors to move their cars while on vacationing or in hospital.

I have given people that came to visit me or my neighbors my visitor’s parking pass,(only issued one per household) to use but on Mondays / Tuesdays you can’t find a parking space because the residents have moved their cars to the correct side of the street the night before.

I hope you can provide me with some direction, because I know that my area is not the only affected by street sweeping or Ward Only parking.”

“this entitled politician made it even worse by parking his car blocking a pedestrian crossing and handicap access point”

By Prince Of Petworth

evans parking

“Dear PoPville,

Jack Evans (Ward 2 council member) parked like an a**hole tonight in Dupont Circle. It’s bad enough navigating the sidewalks and intersections when they’re covered in ice, but this entitled politician made it even worse by parking his car blocking a pedestrian crossing and handicap access point to cross New Hampshire Ave NW. He forced everyone to walk in the street into oncoming traffic. I’m sick of entitled politicians treating this city like they’re own personal kingdom.

Jack, you have to follow the law like everybody else. And if you decide to break them (like you did tonight) you might remember you license plate makes it easy to figure out you’re the a**hole.

Signed,

A Ward 2 Constituent who will not be voting for you during the next election cycle”

Ed. Note: This is not the first time people have been pissed at Evans’ parking prowess. We’ve previously learned that Council Members are not obligated to follow parking regulations except for fire hydrants of course.

Small Business Parking Permit Proposed. Release the Hounds!

By Prince Of Petworth

release the hounds
Photo by PoPville flickr user Clif Burns

“Dear PoPville,

Two days ago, Councilmembers R. White, Nadeau, and Todd introduced the Small Business Parking Permit Act of 2017, which allows “Any small business that abuts a block the Director has designated for residential permit parking . . . to obtain small business parking permits. . . . The rights and restrictions of a small business parking permit shall be the same as the rights and restrictions applied to a residential parking permit except that holders of a small business parking permit shall not be allowed to obtain temporary or visitor permits.” Businesses with up to ten employees are eligible, and can apply for a permit for every employee. The full text of the bill is here.

I don’t drive, so more competition for parking does not affect me personally, but I suspect a number of readers may have opinions on this bill.

Another New Parking Rate Takes Effect in Penn Quarter Monday

By Prince Of Petworth

parking
“Penn Quarter/Chinatown pricing adjustments will occur within the red boundary, between H Street NW, 3rd Street NW, E Street NW, and 11th Street NW.” via DDOT

From a press release:

“Beginning Monday, February 27, 2017, the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) will implement a new parking meter rate schedule in the Penn Quarter and Chinatown neighborhoods. This is the second quarterly parking meter rate adjustment as part of the Penn Quarter-Chinatown pilot project to improve parking availability through demand-based pricing.

The study area includes on-street parking spaces bounded by H Street NW, 3rd Street NW, E Street NW and 11th Street NW. The pilot aims to reduce the time needed to find parking, improve turnover of high-demand parking spaces, provide better parking information to motorists, and reduce congestion by adjusting prices based on observed demand for parking on a block-by-block basis.

Parking meter rates on individual block faces in this area will range from $1.50 to $3.25. As with the previous price adjustment, the rates on each block face will vary by time: weekday morning, weekday midday, weekday evening, and Saturday.

The table below provides a summary of the number of block faces that will have quarterly demand-based meter rate adjustments. Blocks identified for adjustments are shown in the figure below: (more…)

“But what about people like me?”

By Prince Of Petworth

vpp

“So DDOT has a new policy in 2017 that in order to obtain a Visitor Parking Pass (VPP), you need to have a valid DC driver’s license or ID card. It used to be that you entered your DC address, and you would receive the pass in the mail, no further identification required.

This new requirement troubles me. I don’t have a car myself, and yet I would need to change my permanent out-of-district driver’s license in order to have visitors. These are legitimate temporary visitors (e.g. housekeeper, my parents, friends) who would use the pass for a few hours at a time, but more than the maximum 2-hours noted on the signs in my Zone 1 neighborhood. (Note that even to get a DC ID card, you cannot have a driver’s license in any state).

I understand the previous system could be abused by drivers who live and/or work in DC, but their vehicles stay registered out-of-district and they use the VPP as a permanent parking pass.

But what about people like me?

Do people feel this is fair? Is there any other way to obtain a VPP that you know of? If I got a DC resident friend or neighbor to give me one (for the appropriate Zone#, of course), would I or they get fined somehow?”

You can see all forum topics and add your own here.

“Today I noticed all the buildings on my street had this sign on the door.”

By Prince Of Petworth

parking

“Dear PoPville,

You were typically able to park on my street in Columbia heights at night and on weekends without a parking permit. Today I noticed all the buildings on my street had this sign on the door. Have others noticed this? Is it for inauguration or are they changing parking regulations?”

Ed. Note: You can see all the road closures for inauguration here.

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