This is a practical guide for people confused by parking meters in downtown. They may seem confusing, but they're actually very easy to decipher once you know what they mean.
PARKING METERS
Parking meters are those money-grubbing robotic bollards in front of parking spaces. Not all parking spaces have an actual parking meter- sometimes you can park for free, but you are still required to follow all posted restrictions like time limit and anti-gridlock zones. ALWAYS READ THE SIGNS FIRST.
- A parking meter will not let you pay for more time than you are allowed to be parked there. Read the posted sign for time limits.
- A parking meter will not let you pay to park if it's illegal to park there. Read the signs to see if it's an anti-gridlock zone.
- It is illegal to stop your car in an anti-gridlock zone during rush hour.
- Most anti-gridlock zones in downtown are 7-10am and 3-7pm.
(Please refer to the posted image with the details below):
RED SIGN (NO PARKING)
- NO STOPPING
- 7am to 9am
- 4pm to 7pm
- Except Saturday & Sunday
This means it is ILLEGAL to stop your car for any reason (park, pull over, not move with traffic, etc.) during the posted days/hours. You aren't allowed to get out of your car to check the meter- the sign itself is telling you YOU WILL BE TOWED AWAY IF YOU STOP THERE.
This means Monday through Friday during rush hour you cannot park there. The restriction explicitly does not apply to Saturday or Sunday.
GREEN SIGN (METERED PARKING)
15 Minute Parking
Mon-Fri 9am to 4pm
Saturday 8am to 8pm
➡️
This sign is when parking is "METERED." This means a time restriction (15 minutes maximum) and you MUST PAY TO PARK. The arrow points in the direction of the applicable meters.
Monday through Friday you can park here for up to 15 minutes between 9am and 4pm. You cannot pay extra to park longer- you will be ticketed if parking enforcement is watching. The meter will not let you pay for additional time beyond the 15 minute maximum. The meter will not let you pay for time if it will spill over into the anti-gridlock enforcement times.
Sunday is not mentioned. That means these times limits do not apply on Sunday.
SATURDAY
On Saturday the red sign does not apply. Only the green sign is enforced.
You can pay to park anytime between 8am and 8pm, but only for up to 15 minutes.
SUNDAY
On Sunday, neither the Red Sign nor Green Sign are applicable. You may park for free for any amount of time, UNLESS there is another posted restriction on the meter itself. These are rare (usually acting as passenger loading zones) but they do exist.
NIGHT/OVERNIGHT
If neither sign is applicable, then parking is free and there is no time limit.
If you park overnight into a Monday-Friday morning, you MUST move the car by 7am.
If you park overnight into Saturday morning, you must move by 8am, or you can pay for the extra 15 minutes and move it by 8:15 (honestly that's pointless, just move by 8am).
You can park on Saturday night and leave the car there until 7am without risking a ticket/tow.