Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Car Culture

Parking Permit Abusers Being Cleared from Chinatown?

A Chinatown tipster sent along these remarkable pictures yesterday of what seems to be an effort to cut down on placarded vehicles clogging the neighborhood's streets:

There are white paper signs posted on lamp poles and parking meters that say "No Permit Area, Tow Away Zone." Lo and behold, there are hardly any cars with placards. The only way that this could have happened is for there to be an internal memo that was circulated as well. (Permit parkers would normally tear the sheets off and park anyway without a memo that they got already.) Please note that the pictures of Mott Street show a LOT of empty metered parking spaces at 11:30 am! That is amazing since those spaces are normally occupied by placard vehicles. This just goes to show that without placard cars in Chinatown there are many more parking spaces for the public and for business deliveries.

chinatown2.jpg

Of course, not every placarded parker was obeying the directive, as the second picture shows.

Anyone else see any signs like this in Chinatown or elsewhere?

Related:

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Mamdani’s FDNY Spews Anti-Street Safety Talking Points at Bizarre Council Hearing

FDNY and DOT were at cross-purposes during a bikelash Council hearing.

February 26, 2026

Trump Dragnet That Stopped 34th St. Busway Is Holding Up Tremont Avenue, Too

A contentious Manhattan busway is causing trouble in the Bronx.

February 26, 2026

NEVER MIND: Bus Service Tanked After January Snowstorm, So MTA Nixed The Data

The January storm and days of below-freezing temperatures that followed left New York City bus riders in the lurch, the MTA said.

February 26, 2026

Thursday’s Headlines: Beyond Snowballs Edition

Tomorrow it could be rocks. Plus other news.

February 26, 2026

Judge Blocks City From Implementing 15 MPH Bike Speed Limit In Central Park

It's an indication that opponents of this "illegal application" of the so-called "Sammy's Law" may prevail on the merits at an upcoming full hearing.

February 25, 2026

Study: Most Of America’s Paint-Only Bike Paths Are On Our Deadliest Roads

Even worse, most Americans see these terrible lanes and think, "I'd be crazy to ride a bike" — and the cycle continues.

February 25, 2026
See all posts