(Washington, DC) The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) announced today that all signs posted in public space for ‘Emergency No Parking (ENP)’ restrictions must now be electronically printed. Handwritten ENP signs are no longer permitted in public space; they will be removed by inspectors and the permit applicant may be issued a $25.00 fee for each improperly posted sign.

The change will make it easier to track the posting of Emergency No Parking signs and help residents determine if posted signs are valid and properly permitted.

Applications for public space permits can be submitted using DDOT’s Transportation Online Permitting System (TOPS) and Emergency No Parking signs can be printed at the Public Space Permitting Center, 1100 4th Street, from 8:30 am – 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday, and at most Metropolitan Police Department stations.

All ENP signs issued for public space permits should be printed and include the following information:

• Date(s) and hours for which parking is prohibited
• Public space permit number or DDOT contract number
• Date the signs were printed
• Contact name and phone number

Utility companies working in public space in the District now have the ability to print no parking signs at their facilities. If they are responding to an emergency – such as a gas or water leak – they may post handwritten signs if necessary, provided the signs include an Emergency Work Request number.

If you believe a posted no parking sign is not valid, please call the Public Space Inspections office at 202-671-2036.

Public Space Permit Lookup Tool

Residents can also research permits online using the Public Space Permit Lookup Tool . The user can enter a specific address or area and pull up all the Public Space Occupancy and Construction permits issued for that location or within that area, and see information including who the permits were granted to and for how long.

QR Coded Permits

‘Emergency No Parking’ and ‘Reserve Parking’ signs issued by DDOT also now include Quick Response (QR) Codes. Using a smartphone residents can download a free application that scans and reads QR codes, which are two-dimensional barcodes now used for a variety of purposes. Scanning a QR code on a ‘no parking’ sign will retrieve detailed information about why the sign was posted.

Additional information about Public Space Management including Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) is available on the DDOT website at ddot.dc.gov/publicspace.