Denver, like most metropolitan areas, is greatly affected by the high mobility of its population. The heavy volume of vehicular traffic places demands on the design and management of roadways to handle traffic flow. In addition, every trip has a beginning and a destination point. Parking at these start and end points is managed through regulations, especially when it occurs on public roadways. The regulations vary according to traffic and adjacent land use. The following tips can help you avoid getting a parking ticket for violating certain regulations.
PARKING IN DOWNTOWN DENVER
Downtown is compact and has thousands of parking spaces. Parking a couple of blocks from your destination, then walking or taking the FREE 16th Street Mall Shuttle can save time, money and aggravation.
Read all signs before leaving your vehicle. Non-metered spaces may have time limit or other restrictions that apply to the space.
Meters are meant for short-term parking. If your trip is expected to take more than one or two hours, plan to park in a garage or parking lot.
All Downtown parking meters accept dimes and quarters. Bring change and insert the proper coinage before walking away from your parked vehicle.
Park your vehicle within the space provided. At meters this means the front or rear bumper should not extended beyond the meter post.
Never park more than 18 inches from any curb. Do not use another vehicle to judge the distance because your vehicle may be larger or smaller than the other(s). Hint: Use your shoe length to measure the distance. Most people’s shoes are less than 18 inches long.
Time limits on parking range from ½ hour to 2 hours. When the time has lapsed your vehicle must be moved to another location (more than 100 feet) or it can be ticketed.
PARKING IN RESIDENTIAL AREAS
Residential Areas adjacent to or near commercial, industrial, institutional or recreational properties often have posted time limit restrictions. The restrictions help discourage long term parking by employees of and/or visitors to the adjacent properties and preserve the character of the neighborhood. Vehicles are ticketed and sometimes towed when they violate the posted restrictions.
Residents may be eligible to obtain permits to exempt their personal vehicles from the time limit restrictions posted on their block of residence.