Ticketing of cars in public space reaches Capitol Hill

Last week, some Capitol Hill residents received tickets for parking in the driveways in front of their houses. Frustrated homeowners emailed neighborhood lists and blogs, upset at the sudden and unexpected tickets.

Many commenters suspected that these drivers were actually getting tickets for blocking the sidewalk. All too often, cars parked in driveways stick out into the pedestrian area, forcing people to walk around. That’s wrong, and drivers who do that should receive tickets. However, that’s probably not the case here.

In DC, not only is it illegal to block a sidewalk, it’s often illegal to park in a driveway in front of a building. That’s because such driveways are in “public space.” On most blocks in DC, private property doesn’t extend to the sidewalk. Often, even the front steps of many houses or even their bay windows are technically on public property. Homeowners can plant grass and shrubs in this area, called the “public parking,” and sometimes have driveways, but (ironically) aren’t allowed to park cars.

Last fall, inspectors started ticketing many Dupont Circle drivers for parking in public space in front of buildings. DDOT is, rightly, very reluctant to issue new permits for front driveways, but Dupont and Capitol Hill have many driveways that got in during more permissive times. In many cases, people have parked there for decades, though illegally. Now, DC has started ticketing them. Many of the Dupont owners applied for permits before DDOT’s Public Space Committee, but were turned down.

Is that right? On the one hand, it’s against the rules. Also, these driveways are often eyesores and almost always interfere with the pedestrian realm. Why not at least stop their use for long-term car storage? On the other hand, people have parked there for a long time. Is it right to suddenly disrupt an ongoing status quo that people have come to depend on?

Those who say I want to outlaw all car use in DC might be surprised to find I generally come down against this sudden ticketing. Is there any possible middle ground? Is there a way we could more gently discourage and gradually phase out this illegal use?