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New York City

Parking in New York can be very difficult. However, there are certain times and areas in which parking can be found relatively easily. Metered parking spots in Manhattan are mostly on the avenues which run the length of Manhattan and occasionally on parts of the side streets clustered around the avenues. When you turn off the green, red and yellow lines in the Legend of the the SmoothParking map, you get to see all the metered spots at a particular time. Street sides are cleaned on alternate days. On specific holidays during the year street cleaning is suspended, which implies that on those days alternate side street parking restrictions are suspended. Street cleaning never occurs on Wednesdays and therefore there are no alternate side street parking restrictions on Wednesdays. No alternate side parking restrictions does not imply that you will have an easier time finding a spot on Wednesdays. Many cars parked on alternate side streets simply stay put on Wednesdays.

Basic Rules

There are certain parts of the street on which you are never allowed to park, even though the SmoothPark map shows a green line. Here are some important rules:
  • Fire Hydrants - Parking is not allowed on both sides of a Fire Hydrant within 15 Feet.
  • Crosswalks - Every street corner in New York is considered to have a crosswalk even if there are no pavement markings or crossing signs. A parked car is not allowed to block a crosswalk.
  • Yellow lines on curb - Absent any parking restriction yellow lines have no meaning.
  • Sidewalks - Parking on sidewalks is not allowed.
  • Curb Cuts - Parking is not allowed at curb cuts or pedestrian ramps.
  • Driveways - A parked car is not allowed to block a driveway.

For more information consult the NYC parking rules website or dowload a very helpful and detailed brochure from the city here.

Neighborhoods

Neighborhoods in Manhattan differ in the ease with which parking spots can be found. Sometimes it may be easier to find a parking spot in one neighborhood and take the subway or other public transportation to the the neighborhood where you need to be.

Inwood

inwood

Summary - Inwood
Weekday Parking Easy
Weekend Parking Hard
No Parking Anytime 16%
Total Metered Spots 571
Best Parking Time Mon/Thu 930am and Tue/Fri 1030am
Parking in Inwood is generally easier than in most other parts of the city. Dyckman St., Broadway and 207th St. all have meters. If you need to spend the day in downtown or midtown Manhattan, finding a non-metered parking spot in Inwood will generally get you typically anywhere in the west side of Manhattan within half an hour by taking the A subway train. See It on the Map


Washington Heights

inwood

Summary - Washington Heights
Weekday Parking Hard
Weekend Parking Hard
No Parking Anytime 18%
Total Metered Spots 1,784
Best Parking Time Weekdays 1pm
Parking in Washington Heights is generally very difficult even on the weekends. Though there are many legal spots in this area you will often find it hard to locate an available spot. The eastern part of the Heights is generally easier than the western part. Try to avoid looking near the George Washington Bridge and near Columbia Medical Center as these areas tend to be the most difficult. If you need to park near Columbia Medical center there are some interesting spots on Riverside. These spots are often open because if you don't find a spot there you are forced to go another 10 blocks on the highway before you can turn right and get back to regular city streets. Risk and Reward! See It on the Map

Hamilton Heights

inwood

Summary - Hamilton Heights
Weekday Parking Medium
Weekend Parking Easy
No Parking Anytime 18%
Total Metered Spots 446
Best Parking Time Weekdays 1230pm
Street parking in Hamilton Heights is easier than in most other parts of Manhattan. The metered spots in this neighberhood are mostly on Broadway and 145th St. Meters on Broadway have a one hour limit, while meters on 145th St. are mostly 2 hour limit so if you need more time it would be worth looking on 145th St or on Amsterdam Ave. near 145th St. Hamilton Pl. tends to have a lot of open spots. Near City College a lot of the parking spaces are illegal, however, the parts that aren't tend to have more open spots. See It on the Map

Harlem

harlem

Summary - Harlem
Weekday Parking Medium
Weekend Parking Medium
No Parking Anytime 15%
Total Metered Spots 985
Best Parking Time Weekdays 11am
Parking in Harlem is not terrible if you don't mind walking a bit. Unless you are looking for metered parking, try to avoid parking near 125th St. as it has a lot of traffic and few open non-metered spots. The best areas for parking are in the 130's and below 125th St. Most of the metered spots are on Malcom X Blvd. (Lenox Ave.), 3rd Ave., 125th St. and 116th St. Generally, it isn't very hard to find parking on weekends, except for Sunday mornings. See It on the Map

Morningside Heights

Morningside

Summary - Morningside Heights
Weekday Parking Easy
Weekend Parking Easy
No Parking Anytime 18%
Total Metered Spots 478
Best Parking Time Weekdays 1230pm
Parking in Morningside is one of the easier places to park in the city. It can still be difficult to find a spot in the morning. However, in the early afternoon it is generally very easy to find a spot within 5 minutes. During afternoon rush hour it can be a little more difficult but one can still usually find parking within the half-hour. One nice thing about this area is that there are 6 hour meters on Broadway between 116th St. and 122nd St, and on 120th St. between Broadway and Amsterdam and on 114th between Broadway and Amsterdam. These are some of the last 6 hour meters in the city. Meter spots tend to open up quicker and therefore will be easier to get and since they last 6 hours they will last almost as long as regular spots (except for that it will cost you some money but not nearly as much as a garage). See It on the Map

Upper West Side

Upper West

Summary - Upper West Side
Weekday Parking Hard
Weekend Parking Hard
No Parking Anytime 19%
Total Metered Spots 2,923
Best Parking Time Weekdays 11am and 1230pm
Parking in the Upper West side of Manhattan is rather difficult. If you are not in a hurry, locate the yellow lines on the SmoothParking map and park yourself at an empty spot that will be legal within half an hour. Do not leave your car till the legal time has arrived and hopefully a parking enforcement officer will not force you to give up your spot before it becomes legal. Beware that on alternate side parking streets there is often a lot of (illegal) double parking, increasing substantially the pool of cars competing for newly available (legal) spots. Warning! The West Side often causes a lot of frustration because even though there are a lot of legal spots its very hard to tell how long it will take to find a spot. You can find a spot immediately or it can take over an hour. See It on the Map

Upper East Side

Upper East

Summary - Upper East Side
Weekday Parking Hard
Weekend Parking Hard
No Parking Anytime 18%
Total Metered Spots 4,634
Best Parking Time Weekdays 1030am and 1230pm
Parking on the Upper East Side can be a challenge. The issue is not the amount of legal spots available but the amount of people who want those spots. What this means is that spots are available but it could take you a long time to find them. One tip is that just because a doorman or building puts a brass sign in front of a building that says no parking that sign doesn't have legal standing. Even on the weekends parking on the Upper East Side can take a long time to find and tends to be very frustrating. See It on the Map

Midtown West

Midtown West

Summary - Midtown West
Weekday Parking Very Hard
Weekend Parking Hard
No Parking Anytime 38%
Total Metered Spots 3,071
Best Parking Time Weekdays 6pm
Parking during the day is near impossible. In the evening however,  for restaurant and theater visits consult the SmoothParking map to locate spots that become legal at the desired time. In general that will not be in the theater district itself, but to the west of it closer to the Hudson River. See It on the Map

Midtown East

Midtown East

Summary - Midtown East
Weekday Parking Very Hard
Weekend Parking Hard
No Parking Anytime 41%
Total Metered Spots 1,915
Best Parking Time Weekdays 6pm
Just like Midtown West, parking during the day is nearly impossible in Midtown East. Parking there during the day is nearly impossible. If you need to be in this area on a weekday during the day it would be best to take public transportation or park your car in a lot. The only possible options (though still high unlikely) is to the few street near the East River and 1st Avenue that do have legal parking during the day. Between 7am - 6pm during on weekdays there is basically no legal parking. After 6pm on weekdays there are metered spots till 12pm which are often not that hard to find, but generally you will have to keep refilling the meter every hour. From Midnight to 7am and on Sundays parking is generally allowed in this area and meters are not in effect, so if these are the times you need than Midtown-East should work out just fine. See It on the Map

Chelsea

Chelsea

Summary - Chelsea
Weekday Parking Hard
Weekend Parking Easy
No Parking Anytime 24%
Total Metered Spots 1,032
Best Parking Time Weekdays 6pm
Parking in Chelsea is almost as difficult as parking in Midtown during the day. The one area where you might find parking is between 8th and 10th Avenues from 16th St. to 30th St. Generally, the further south you go the better your chances are. On weekends it is usually easy to find parking for short amounts of time because there are many corporate offices in the area that are closed. See It on the Map

Murray Hill / Kip's Bay / Gramercy

Murray Hill

Summary - Murray Hill
Weekday Parking Hard
Weekend Parking Hard
No Parking Anytime 29%
Total Metered Spots 2,425
Best Parking Time Tue/Fri 10am and 1130am
A lot like midtown, parking in this area is very difficult during the day. Towards the East River there is somewhat more parking (except 1st Ave.) but still not a lot. The one nice thing about this area is that there our a ton of metered spots. In fact, this area has the highest percentage of metered spots during the daytime in Manhattan. If you are willing to take a metered spot it might take a little bit of waiting but you should be able to find a spot. Otherwise finding a garage is probably your best bet. During the weekend finding a spot should take less than a half-hour. See It on the Map

West Village / Greenwich Village

West Village

Summary - West Village
Weekday Parking Hard
Weekend Parking Hard
No Parking Anytime 28%
Total Metered Spots 2,023
Best Parking Time Tue/Fri 1030am and Mon/Thu 1230pm
Parking in the Village and the West Village is challenging both day and night. You probably have a slightly better chance to find a spot when you go further West. There is limited availability of metered parking in the heart of the West Village. See It on the Map

East Village / Lower East Side

Lower East side

Summary - East Village
Weekday Parking Hard
Weekend Parking Hard
No Parking Anytime 26%
Total Metered Spots 3,746
Best Parking Time Mon/Thu 1030am and 1230pm
In the East Village parking is diffiuclt but by no means impossible. Generally, the further East you go the easier it will be. In the lower east side it is diffiuclt to find a spot near Williamsburg Bridge. On weekends it is actually easier to find a spot the further west you go. One of the few times heading away from the rivers to find parking is a good idea. Even on weekdays, if you are looking for meters it would be wise to head west. See It on the Map

Financial District

Financial District

Summary - Financial District
Weekday Parking Very Hard
Weekend Parking Hard
No Parking Anytime 64%
Total Metered Spots 537
Best Parking Time Weekdays 7pm
Just like Midtown, parking during the day is near impossible in the Financial District. There is very limited availability of parking spots in the far Western and Eastern parts. There is extremely limited availability of metered parking. Even during the night more than 50% of the streets are off limit for parking. Trying to find a spot in the Financial District is just asking for trouble. See It on the Map