19 guides to the rules DC actually enforces — distances, permit zones, meter hours, tickets, and towing. Written for drivers who park here, checked against official DC and DMV sources.
Every figure above comes from DC's posted rules and current fine schedule. The sign on your blockface always overrides a citywide rule.
What the curb actually allows: distances, sign hierarchy, and why two signs on one pole disagree.
Guide · 7 min read
DC street sweeping runs March 1 through October 31 on a posted weekday window — usually 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM, one side of the street. The ticket is $45–$50. How to read the sign and never get caught.
Read guide →Guide · 12 min read
Street parking in Washington DC, decoded: how far from a hydrant, corner, crosswalk, and driveway you can park, plus time limits, weekends, and sign order.
Read guide →Guide · 14 min read
The 6 DC parking sign types decoded — rush hour ($100), ResPP ($35), street sweeping ($45), meters ($30) — which sign wins when two conflict on one pole.
Read guide →Guide · 9 min read
DC has 200,000+ parking signs on 7,000 miles of roadway. Here's why the same pole can show three rules — and which sign actually controls your space.
Read guide →Guide · 6 min read
40 feet from the corner on your side of the street, 25 feet from a stop or yield sign, and never on the crosswalk itself. DC's real corner setbacks, how to judge them, and what each ticket costs.
Read guide →Guide · 6 min read
5 feet. That is the clearance Washington DC requires from any driveway or alley entrance, plus 12 inches from the curb. How to judge it, the fine, and the tow risk.
Read guide →Guide · 9 min read
Washington DC maps curb rules by block and blockface, not by street address. Here's why one address covers several different parking rules — and how to read the block instead.
Read guide →Residential stickers, guest passes, and which of DC's eight zones covers your block.
Guide · 13 min read
How to get a DC Residential Parking Permit: eligibility, DMV documents, the $35 annual cost, renewal timing, and what the sticker does not cover.
Read guide →Guide · 8 min read
How the DC Visitor Parking Pass works: who can get one, how to request it online, where it is valid, and the RPP rules Maryland and Virginia drivers get ticketed for.
Read guide →Guide · 14 min read
Five official DC parking maps, what each one actually covers, and the layers every one of them leaves out — meters, sweeping, rush hour, and posted curb signs.
Read guide →What each violation costs, how DC enforces it, and what to do once you have the citation.
Guide · 11 min read
Every 2026 DC parking fine from $45 sweeping to $250 accessible-zone, how to pay online, the 30-day deadline before fines double, and how to contest a ticket.
Read guide →Guide · 9 min read
How to pay a DC speeding ticket or photo enforcement ticket online. Lookup, fines, payment deadlines, and how to contest a speed or red-light camera ticket in Washington DC.
Read guide →Guide · 11 min read
Your car was towed in DC. Which lot it's in, the phone number that tells you, the $100 tow plus $20/day storage math, and what to bring to get it released.
Read guide →Guide · 14 min read
Who writes parking tickets in Washington DC, when enforcement is active, the ten most-issued violations, and the exact thresholds where DC boots or tows your car.
Read guide →Free-meter days, overnight rules, and destination-specific parking that actually works.
Guide · 8 min read
How DC parking meters actually work: 7 AM start times, free Sundays and holidays, time limits, ParkMobile zones, and the $30 expired-meter ticket.
Read guide →Guide · 7 min read
Is parking free in Washington DC today? The 2026 list of holidays when meters are free, plus what stays enforced — RPP, rush hour, and street sweeping.
Read guide →Guide · 9 min read
Can you park overnight on the street in Washington DC? Meter hours end at 10 PM, but RPP zones, 2-hour blocks, and out-of-state tags decide whether you get a ticket by morning.
Read guide →Guide · 9 min read
Where to actually park for the National Mall: free Ohio Drive spots, 3-hour metered perimeter zones, nearby garages, weekend and holiday meter rules, and tow risk.
Read guide →Guide · 14 min read
There is no single best DC parking app — there are four different jobs. What ParkMobile, SpotHero, ParkWhiz, SpotAngels and the city's official apps actually do, and the one question none of them answer.
Read guide →