Politics & Government
DDOT Delays Visitor Park Pass Changes
The agency still hopes to implement new reforms to the program that allows visitors to park on District streets without fear of ticketing.
The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) has extended the validity of existing visitor parking passes through the end of 2013 and hopes to have a new system in place for the new year.
The move comes after a strong rebuke from city leaders over a plan that would have sent a pass to each home in the District.
Georgetown's advisory neighborhood commission was among those critics. Community leaders had been in the process of developing a custom parking system for the neighborhood with DDOT officials prior to DDOT's announcement about the city-wide plan. Georgetown residents currently can go to a police station to obtain a temporary pass. Several commissioners believed the placards would lead to further congestion for residents looking for parking near their homes.
DDOT still plans to make one 2013/2014 pass per household available free of charge, according to a news release from the agency. But the Georgetown Current reports that the new passes will have some tweaks that will help with enforcement and reduce cheating.
Under the proposed changes for 2013/2014, residents will be required to register for their pass, which would then link each pass to a specific address and advisory neighborhood commission. The passes would include a QR code that parking officials can scan to determine if the pass is being used in the appropriate area of any given ward.
"We want to make sure that the people that are using these passes are legitimate,” DDOT Spokesman Reggie Sanders told the Current.
How do you think the parking passes should be managed and distributed?
Read more:
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
