City of West Hollywood
Home MenuParking Meters
On-street parking meter rates are $2.00 per hour or $0.50 for each 15 minutes throughout the City. A 5-minute grace period is supplied at the end of every transaction. The hours of operation for the City’s parking meters are noted on the map below.
The City of West Hollywood’s Parking Division wants you to have the latest information on plans to extend parking meter operating hours to better serve local businesses and the broader community.
How do parking meters fit into the City’s overall parking system?
Parking meters were created in the 1930’s to help improve customer turnover in commercial areas, and they remain the primary tool for this purpose. A well-managed meter program gives visitors enough time to shop, dine and conduct other business while providing a time-based incentive to move their cars when they are done. Good policy strikes the balance between attracting customers and creating turnover.
Why are meter hours being extended?
Parking meters work effectively during the day, providing access for visitors and creating turnover for businesses. However after 6 p.m. (except on Sunset Boulevard, where meters run until 2 a.m.) the most visible and convenient spaces fill up and slow parking turnover to a crawl. This generates a false perception that there is a City parking shortage when in fact plenty of spaces are available at nearby garages or lots. Because many long-term parkers stay at meters all night visitors who arrive after 6 p.m. and need to park for two hours or less have to pay for off-street parking which is higher than the hourly rate one would pay at a parking meter if meters were enforced after 6 p.m.
Why Now?
The City has opened several new parking facilities in the past year (with more to come), and now West Hollywood has more off-street parking than ever. Since the City first incorporated, we have invested significant resources to create more than 1,100 new spaces in garages and lots within 1.9 square miles. At the same time, there is still more we can do to put our public parking to work for our community, relieve congestion, support business and add to our quality of life. Extending parking meter hours will help move more long-term parkers into appropriate spaces in parking structures and lots and keep meters in key locations open for local business customers. We can also now offer more options to evening-shift employees who currently rely on parking meters.
What benefits can we expect from running meters after 6 p.m.?
Plain and simple, there will be more meters available for visitors throughout the evening. The same space that now holds just one car per night will be able to serve three or more customers. This will help improve traffic circulation, reduce greenhouse gas emissions from cars hunting for parking, and even control prices at private parking lots and garages that will now have to compete with metered parking rates. Employees will also benefit from new options for dependable, affordable parking in place of the current random process of finding a space in time for work. The additional funds generated from longer hours will be earmarked for additional Sheriff’s Department and private security patrols that will increase the presence of law enforcement in the community.
What are the new hours of operation for meters in each neighborhood?
The uniqueness and variety of needs in our community call for different solutions by location. The map below illustrates the new hours of enforcement for each area.New Meter Hours