OPINION: Want to Reclaim New York City’s Curbs? Evict The Placard Class

Thousands of people who work for governmental agencies park on New York City streets for free. The city needs to reform the rampant overuse of parking placards, which give their owners the power to park their personal vehicles in metered spots and “no parking” zones — leading to widespread crowding — without paying a single cent.

Mayor Mamdani’s recent creation of the Office of Curb Management within the Department of Transportation is a decent start, but the placard plague continues to afflict the entire city, and is especially disruptive below Chambers Street. That’s where 235,574 private-sector employees and tens of thousands of public-sector employees work, in addition to the 70,000 residents who call the neighborhood home. Encouraging such large numbers of workers to park here during peak hours, as placards do, only further congests our streets.

During a recent weekday Gridlock Alert Day, when DOT urged New Yorkers to walk, bike or use mass transit, the Alliance for Downtown New York conducted an internal survey that found 336 vehicles displaying parking placards in Lower Manhattan south of Chambers Street.

On Barclay Street between West Broadway and Church Street — a zone exclusively reserved for loading and unloading trucks — we found nine vehicles with parking placards. On a short stretch of Fulton Street between William and Gold streets, we found 17 vehicles parked using placards issued by public agencies.

Lower Manhattan is one of the New York region’s most transit-accessible locations. The area is served by 13 subway lines, two PATH lines and three commuter ferry landings. We have a robust network of Citi Bike stations and more than 2.3 miles of bike lanes. Dozens of bus routes, including express services from the outer boroughs and beyond, deliver passengers here. And more than 90 percent of jobs are within a five minute walk of a subway station or bus stop. Much of this placard parking is unnecessary and detrimental to the public good. 

The mayor established his new curb management initiative to bring more order and ease to New York City streets. There is a solution that encourages better uses for our precious curb space. 

First, the city must end the generous issuing of parking placards and rigorously account for those already in use. Second, New York should reclaim valuable curb space for uses that benefit more people. We could install microdelivery hubs to improve last-mile deliveries, secure bike parking, electric vehicle charging stations, and dedicated space for widespread containerized trash collection. Allotting more curb space to services like these would also improve the pedestrian experience.

This is an issue that, despite the attempts of past mayors, has remained unsolved for nearly 20 years. If the mayor wants to leave a lasting streetscape legacy, he has the opportunity to free up precious curb space for better uses. Now is the time to act on placard reform.