City to make all street parking free during COVID-19 pandemic

Mayor Jenny Durkan announced today that the City of Seattle will temporarily eliminate all paid and time-limited street parking rules to support residents and businesses during the coronavirus pandemic.

Beginning Saturday, April 4, the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) and Seattle Police will implement the following changes to parking enforcement:

• No payment will be required on streets with paid parking.
• Hourly time limits will not be enforced outside of Restricted Parking Zones (RPZ).
• Loading zones up to 30-minutes, including new food pick-up zones, will continue to be enforced.
• Other previously announced temporary parking enforcement changes including suspension of the 72-hour parking rule will continue until further notice.
• Special zones will still be in effect, including new zones for hospital and human services staff as well as existing zones for freight, food trucks, or charter buses. 
• Restricted Parking Zone (RPZ) time limits will be enforced so that people who live in RPZ neighborhoods can still find parking near their homes.

“I have heard from restaurateurs and residents alike who have been ticketed while getting food to-go or dropping off family members at essential jobs,” District 6 City Councilmember Dan Strauss said in a statement about the new parking rules. “My office assisted a resident retrieving their improperly towed vehicle during this emergency and no one should have extraneous and avoidable stress added to their lives. We should not be nickel-and-diming Seattleites during this emergency.”

The City will continue to enforce other parking regulations, such as no-parking zones, peak-period parking restrictions for transit and travel lanes, disabled permit parking spaces, commercial and passenger load zones, and temporary no-parking areas designated by a-frame signs, including temporary food pick-up zones.

The City says they’ll reinstate paid parking by phasing it back in after the stay-home order is lifted. They’ll begin by enforcing a minimum payment of $0.50 per hour in all paid areas for three weeks, and then will adjust rates based on demand as customers return to business districts.

More information about the temporary parking changes can be found here.