Ever wondered what to do when parking before the posted enforcement hours?
Are you worried about overpaying if you pay too early?
Worried you may have to return to the meter to pay?
Good news, all meters in the LA Express Park project area are programmed to allow you to pay in advance, if applicable!
Prepay is the ability to pay the parking meter in advance of enforcement hours and the payment be applied only towards the enforcement period of your parking session.
Prepay is not an option if the space has “No Parking” restrictions directly preceding enforcement hours.
“No Parking” restrictions include morning peak hour restrictions (i.e. “Tow Away No Stopping 7AM-9AM Mon-Fri”), Street Cleaning restrictions, Passenger Loading only, and others. The meter will not allow you to pay for parking with a card or by app if there is a current “No Parking” restriction.
Please Note: Prepay requires your car be parked in the space at the time of payment. Prepay is not a way to reserve a space. There is no procedure in place to reserve on-street parking spaces at this time.
Example Scenario
The on-street sign states that parking enforcement begins at 8am.
You arrive at 7am and would like to park until 9am.
If parking is not restricted during the parking session,
a payment for 1 hour of parking at 7am will result in a paid meter from 8am-9am.
Prepay is not an option at a space with “No Parking” restrictions preceding enforcement hours.
If no other restrictions are posted, prepay is an option at this space.
How to Prepay for Parking
- Always check posted signs for all currently enforceable parking restrictions. Ensure no restrictions precede or interrupt your intended parking session.
- Determine how long your parking session will be. Decide on time beginning from enforcement hours and within the posted time limit.
- Pay for the intended length of time and the meter will apply the payment towards a parking session beginning at the posted enforcement hours.
Meter Example
The meter will flip between the above two screens showing the day’s rates, the current time, and when the next enforcement period will begin.
“Pay in Advance” is displayed on the top banner only if prepay is an option at this parking space.
There is no need to wait until 8am to make the payment if the space is free of “No Parking” restrictions during the parking session. Paying prior to enforcement at this meter will result in the payment being applied towards the upcoming enforcement time at the upcoming rate.
For the particular meter shown above, the upcoming rate is $2 per hour between 8am-11am.
At 7am, a payment of $1 will earn 30 minutes of parking time during enforcement hours.
“Total Time” will list the total time applied to the meter from the current time including any time before enforcement hours.
“Expires” will list the time the parking session will expire during enforcement hours. This will not include any time before enforcement hours.