The District issues far more parking tickets than other cities of its size and after raking in $80 million last year it is poised to collect a record $90 million in fines this year alone. The city’s 200 parking enforcement personnel issue more than 5,000 parking tickets a day, more than 1.6 million tickets already this fiscal year, according to a report released Wednesday by AAA Mid-Atlantic.
Parking ticket revenue is on track to top $90 million in D.C. this budget year, up from $80 million in fiscal 2010 and $71 million the year before, the report shows.
That’s five to 20 times more than other cities collect.
Seattle, with a population similar to D.C.’s, had $21.5 million in parking ticket revenue in 2010. Portland, Ore., made only $5.1 million, according to the International Parking Institute.
One reason for the abundance of tickets in D.C. is that they can be issued by so many entities, including two city agencies, District police, Secret Service, National Park Police and Capitol Police.
But AAA said the high number of tickets shows that D.C. doesn’t have enough parking options.
“There is still a paucity of available on-street parking slots in the city, and the cost of parking in a downtown parking lot or garage, which can range from $5 to as much as $19, is expensive and prohibitive for many motorists,” said AAA Mid-Atlantic’s John Townsend. “That means the competition for each parking space is still fierce, as residents and visitors circle the block just to park.”
Residents say the city’s parking enforcement is ruthless.
D.C. resident Eric Bethel crisscrosses the city every day for work.
| Parking ticket revenue per capita per year* |
| -D.C., $130 |
| -New York City, $74 |
| -Seattle, $35 |
| -Portland, Ore. $8.75 |
| -Memphis, Tenn. $2.88 |
| *Approximately, based on data from AAA Mid-Atlantic, the International Parking Institute and news reports. |
He once parked in front of a construction site and was given a “courtesy tow.” But the courtesy tower plopped his car in front of a meter and didn’t put any cash in it, leaving Bethel with a $50 fine.
“They’re very eager to give out tickets when it’s only one minute or two past the expiration time,” he said. “My wife is at my throat right now with the amount of money I spend on tickets.”
Bethel estimates he paid about $1,700 in parking tickets this year alone.
Others wonder how they’ll pay the fines, which range from $25 to $100, depending on the infraction, and double after 30 days.
David Khatib, an unemployed Falls Church resident, was in D.C. on Wednesday to pay two tickets totaling $130.
“Where do I get this kind of money to pay these tickets off?” he asked, saying the District charged too much for tickets.
Others just think parking officers are far too eager to dole out the citations.
“They give out too many tickets for the wrong reason. They’re price gouging,” said Southeast resident Samuel Walker, who has received several parking tickets and five speed camera tickets in the last two years. “They aren’t enforcing traffic. It’s about the money. They’re taking advantage of you, and it’s sad.”
But that may not be a phenomenon limited to D.C.
“One thing we have seen is that cities, because of their budget crunches, have tried to tap parking revenue and use it for things that are not necessarily related,” said Helen Sullivan, spokeswoman for the International Parking Institute.
D.C. Council member Mary Cheh said that’s not the case for the District.
“We should be enforcing the law and people should be parking according to the rules and paying the amount they have to pay,” she said. But, she added, “I want the rules to be rationalized, and as far I’m concerned they aren’t.”
Cheh said parking would get less “nutty” if the District would hire a parking manager, a position the D.C. Council created in October but the city has yet to fill.
