Capital goes fully paid parking from August 18

abu dhabi — Starting August 18, Abu Dhabi city residents will have to pay for parking at all zones, it was announced on Tuesday. The Department of Transport has urged vehicle owners to obtain resident parking permits before the implementation date to avoid fines over violations.

Up to two parking permits are issued for every residence — the first costs Dh800 annually, while the second is for Dh1,200. Emiratis can get up to four free permits per residence.

abu dhabi — Paid parking will be implemented across all sectors in Abu Dhabi city, starting August 18, the Department of Transport (DoT) announced on Tuesday.

The department has urged all vehicle owners to apply for resident parking permits before the implementation date to avoid violation fines.

The move to implement new parking rules is to organise parking spaces more efficiently, ensure smooth traffic flow, eliminate random parking and improve road safety, the department said in a statement.

This initiative will also help motorists by reducing the time they spend looking for parking, the statement added.

Paid parking was introduced in Abu Dhabi in 2009 as a solution to the acute parking shortage in the Capital city. It started with busy commercial sectors and gradually more and more residential areas were converted into paid parking slots.

While annual fee for first resident parking permit for expats is Dh800, for the second permit, one has to pay Dh1,200. Permits are also issued bi-annually for Dh400 for the first permit and Dh600 for the second permit according to the remaining time of the tenant contract or as per the tenant’s request.

The UAE nationals living in apartments are eligible for four free residents’ permits after the approval from the department.

Tenants and property owners can apply for residents’ parking permits in addition to first-degree relatives living in the same residence (father, mother, wife, children, brothers and sisters), two permits per each residence.

Permit should be issued specifically for the vehicle and zone where the residence is located. To get residential permit, motorists need to submit a tenancy contract along with other documents.

There are two different types of parking sectors in Abu Dhabi — black and turquoise for standard parking and white and turquoise for premium parking. Standard sector costs Dh2 per hour and premium sector costs Dh3.

Starting August, each sector will be specified using signages instead of the usual different painting, according to the statement issued by the department.