Atlanta, GA Parking Rules: Preferential Parking Districts (2026)

Code of Ordinances § 150-147(a) does two things: it establishes the residential permit parking program, and it lists the authorized areas by name. The list opens with the Ansley Park permit parking area at (1) and the Ardmore Park permit parking area at (2), and it closes with the Virginia Highland permit parking area at (19). Inman Park, Midtown, Poncey-Highland and Castleberry Hill are also among the 19. Only areas on that list are authorized residential permit parking areas.

The permit has a specific job. The section says vehicles bearing the special permit "may be parked in excess of the time limits posted on streets" within a permit area. Inside a designated area, parking without a permit is capped at two hours during a posted 12-hour window. A vehicle displaying a valid permit is not held to that cap. The benefit described in § 150-147(a) is relief from the posted time limit on those streets.

Permits are issued under the same division of the code. A permit costs $20.00 and lasts one year, per § 150-151 and § 150-152. A single-family address may receive two decals.

The list can grow. Residents who want a new area petition the Department of Transportation. The petition must carry signatures from 70 percent of the residences in the area, and City Council must approve the new area by ordinance. Because the 19 areas are written into § 150-147(a) by name, a neighborhood is not a permit area until that approval happens.