Pay or Permit Parking

What is Pay or Permit Parking?

This type of parking allows:

• Visitors to park without a time limit, so they pay only for the time they need.
• Residents with an annual residential parking permit (RPP) to park and not have to pay hourly parking fees.

How it works

• For visitors:
  • If you see a Pay by Plate sign for the block, you are required to pay to park
  • There are multiple ways to pay (Parking Meters - How to Pay)
  • You can pay by phone: look for signs along the block that display a location code you can use to pay with the PayByPhone App.
  • You can also pay with cash or card at a paystation. There is at least one paystation on each side of a Pay or Permit block with a sign that says “pay here”
• For residents:
  • If you see a Pay by Plate Sign that says "Except Permits" and includes your permit area code, then you do not have to pay hourly parking fees to park
  • You can secure an annual or shorter-term permit.
    • To apply for a permit, you can:
      • Visit our Residential Parking Permit (RPP) webpage
      • Visit the SFMTA Customer Service Center at 11 South Van Ness Ave
• Other permits are available including for caregivers, business owners, and teachers.

The Goal

To make it easier to find parking in mixed-use residential areas with many visitors parking, often near commercial corridors. Pay or Permit Parking aims to make it easier for residents to park near their homes and also help businesses by making it easier for customers to find parking.

Cost

Price varies by block and time of day. The current range is $1-$3 per hour. You can check the latest rates here: Demand-Responsive Parking Pricing

Enforcement

• Pay or Permit Spaces are enforced during the days and times posted at each paystation.
• You can confirm if payment is required by checking the paystation on the block where you are parking or in the PayByPhone app.
• Payment is required on most holidays except for New Year's Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. For more information, you can view our Holiday Street Parking Enforcement Schedule Page

What does Pay or Permit Parking look like?

• You can refer to the example images at the bottom of the website for reference.
• A Pay or Permit block has signs that say “Pay by Plate” at the top and “Except Permits” at the bottom with the specific permit type that does not have to pay.
• Paystations are about four feet tall with a screen on one side. You’ll usually see one to two paystations per side of the block.
• There are usually three signs per side of the block, similar to the number of RPP signs on time-limited RPP blocks. 

Where is there Pay or Permit Parking?

• Hayes Valley
  • For details and a map, you can visit our Hayes Valley Parking and Curb Management Plan website)
• SoMa:
  • Colin P. Kelly Jr. Street, southwest side, between Brannan Street and Townsend Street
• Potrero Hill:
  • De Haro Street, east side, between 17th Street and Mariposa Street

Visit the Pay or Permit Expansion Project website to learn how we are thinking about possible expansion of the program.