Arlington County, VA Parking Rules: EV Charging (2026)

4 defines a plug-in electric motor vehicle as an on-road vehicle drawing propulsion from a traction battery of at least 4 kilowatt hours that recharges from an external power source, weighs no more than 14,000 pounds gross, and meets applicable emissions standards. Subsection B makes it a traffic infraction to park in a space adjacent to a marked electric vehicle charging station under two circumstances: the vehicle is not a plug-in electric motor vehicle at all, or it is a plug-in electric vehicle that is parked there without actually being in the process of charging.

Either violation carries a civil penalty of not more than $25. Subsection C conditions that penalty on signage: no fine can be imposed unless the reserved space displays a sign stating "PENALTY, UP TO $25," which the county allows to be a separate placard mounted below the sign identifying the space as EV-reserved. As with the county's other camera- and sign-based parking rules, subsection D gives prima facie evidentiary weight to proof that the registered owner, lessee or renter was driving at the time, rebuttable in court, and the violation can be charged on the uniform traffic summons form.

Subsection E authorizes law enforcement officers, other uniformed county employees, or uniformed contract personnel to issue the summons or parking ticket, the same enforcement structure used for other non-police parking citations in the chapter. The section was adopted by Ordinance No. 2.