If your street is not part of a residential parking district, you and your neighbors may petition the City to establish such a zone. But your area must meet certain conditions: a minimum of 80% of available street parking must be filled during the day and at least 50% of the vehicles must be owned by non-residents. If you decide to proceed with a petition, note that you will need the signatures of 250 households within the proposed area and all affected blocks in the zone must run contiguously for a minimum of one mile. Completed petitions should be sent to the DPT's Traffic Engineering Division at 25 Van Ness Avenue, Suite 345, San Francisco, CA 94102. You may also pick up blank petition forms there. A number of city agencies, including the Board of Supervisors and the Mayor, must review and/or approve all petitions, so the process is not a quick one. Don't expect to see the actual establishment of your residential parking zone until about 12 months after you have submitted your request. Call Traffic Engineering at (415) 554-2339 for details.

To obtain more information, including permit fee schedules, how to request a waiver for additional permits, and procedures for extending existing residential parking areas, visit the DPT online or call them at (415) 553-1631. If you are interested in having a DPT officer attend your next neighborhood association meeting to discuss parking issues in your area, send your written request to:

Bond M. Yee, Executive Director
Department of Parking & Traffic
25 Van Ness Avenue, Suite 410
San Francisco, CA 94102
Fax: (415) 554-9834

Finally, for insights into the City's perspective on the parking situation, read through the Planning Department's policy paper, Parking and Better Neighborhoods: Getting It Right.