Skip to content

Illegal Parking Photo Sting – City Hall

Every day, tens of thousands of government employees park their cars in front of fire hyrants, bus stops, on the sidewalk and in otherwise illegal places. The practice endangers New Yorkers, and the NYPD refuses to ticket these brazen law-breakers. That's where we come in. Last year, volunteers from Transportation Alternatives busted hundreds of illegal government parkers in two famous studies. This year, we’re keeping up the pressure on permit-abusers with a new website. A team of T.A. staffers and volunteers will document illegal parking patterns with digital cameras (you provide your own) and the pics will be uploaded and geo-coded on the new website, providing a real-time snapshot of the worst illegal parking.

Every day, tens of thousands of government employees park their cars in front of fire hyrants, bus stops, on the sidewalk and in otherwise illegal places. The practice endangers New Yorkers, and the NYPD refuses to ticket these brazen law-breakers. That’s where we come in. Last year, volunteers from Transportation Alternatives busted hundreds of illegal government parkers in two famous studies. This year, we’re keeping up the pressure on permit-abusers with a new website. A team of T.A. staffers and volunteers will document illegal parking patterns with digital cameras (you provide your own) and the pics will be uploaded and geo-coded on the new website, providing a real-time snapshot of the worst illegal parking.

Photo of Aaron Donovan
Before he began blogging about land use and transportation, Aaron Donovan wrote The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund's annual fundraising appeal for three years and earned a master's degree in urban planning from Columbia. Since then, he has worked for nonprofit organizations devoted to New York City economic development. He lives and works in the Financial District, and sees New York's pre-automobile built form as an asset that makes New York unique in the United States, and as a strategic advantage that should be capitalized upon.

Read More:

Streetsblog has migrated to a new comment system. New commenters can register directly in the comments section of any article. Returning commenters: your previous comments and display name have been preserved, but you'll need to reclaim your account by clicking "Forgot your password?" on the sign-in form, entering your email, and following the verification link to set a new password — this is required because passwords could not be carried over during the migration. For questions, contact tips@streetsblog.org.

More from Streetsblog New York City

‘A Solution, But To What Problem?’ Experts Say AVs Are The Elephant In The Room, But There’s Still Time To Figure Out Their Role

April 20, 2026

Opinion: Don’t Design Grand Army Plaza For 2007 — Build It For The Future

April 20, 2026

AG James Won’t Charge Cop Who Ran Over And Dragged Sleeping Man in Park While Applying Makeup

April 20, 2026

Monday’s Headlines: World Cup Fuss Edition

April 20, 2026

Crashes Went Down 15% In Harlem Trash Container Zone, As Mamdani Hawks Citywide Rollout

April 17, 2026
See all posts