Parking
PARK YOUR BIKE
Were you wondering where all of the bike racks are? They’re right HERE.
PARK YOUR CAR
Who’s in charge of Parking?
- Private Owners and Operators: Nearly all of the 45 parking lots and garages in downtown Hartford are privately owned and operated. These lots and garages answer to the Department of Licenses and Inspections.
- The Hartford Parking Authority (HPA) operates the parking meters, but has very little to do with those privately owned lots/garages.
What’s the deal with the weird parking kiosks?
These parking kiosks are replacing the old school, coin-op meters. They’re really easy to use. Park, go over to the kiosk, pay for whatever kind of time you need with change or your credit card (totally secure), take the little piece of paper the kiosk spits out and but it back in your car on the dashboard so the parking ticket people can see it. Tah-da. That’s it. There are very specific instructions printed right on the kiosks too. In case you forget.
Good to know…
- “Free” Street Parking: From 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 a.m. (and all day Saturdays and Sundays) all metered parking turns into free parking, as there is no charge to park.
- The on-street meters are enforced Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. including holidays unless otherwise announced. If you did not hear or see an announcement, it’s safe to say it’s an enforcement day.
- There are a bunch of meters around town that are no parking from 7:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. and again from 3:30 – 6:00 p.m. This is so they can open up more space during rush hour. It may drive you completely crazy when you’re looking for a spot during those hours, but when you’re trying to get in and out of downtown, it’s a great help.
- You may not get a ticket, but you might get towed: On street parking in bus lanes late at night is not a good idea, even though sometimes it looks like one.
Download: Downtown Hartford CT – Parking Lots and Garages Map