WASHINGTON — Parking in D.C. is often a nightmare for people who live in the city, especially for visitors. D.C. has launched an easier Visitor Parking Program.
You’ll still have to analyze all city signs and determine if you can park your vehicle or not, but getting the proper pass to stay in residential areas is becoming easier---a sign of changing times.
The Visitor Parking Pass was launched in 2013. At that time, it was met widely with opposition. With the new VPP Program, people can register for the annual pass allowing their guests to park for two hours in a Residential Permit parking zone in all eight wards.
“The intent of the system is to make getting a Visitor Parking Permit easier, and also to reduce parking congestion in residential areas,” Everett Lott, Acting Director for DDOT said.
The new online parking portal now allows people to print out their own parking permits for visitors and can be accessed through the portal provided by D.C. online or through an app on your Apple or Android phones.
“This particular system, the automated system, is connected to the resident and to the license plate. So, it makes it a lot more user-friendly, but also helps to eliminate any of the abuse that was possible in the past,” Lott added.
If you already have a visitor parking pass from last year, you don’t need to do anything until it expires.
“Our 2020 annual Visitor Parking Passes, those, will remain in effect until September 30 of 2021, but this is the new way and it will be an automated system going forward,” Lott said.
Parking permits must be printed and displayed prominently on the windshield of vehicles. Permits can be printed at home, D.C. Public Library branches, or at kiosks located at DDOT Headquarters, the DDOT Permit Office, and Metropolitan Police Department precincts in the First and Third Districts.
DDOT encourages residents and their guests to provide feedback about the system to ddot.parking@dc.gov. For more information on ParkDC Permits, please visit parkdc.com or call 202-671-2631.
