‘RESERVED’ SPOTS

Council eyes parking permits by nabe

City Council members on Wednesday plan to introduce legislation that would require the Department of Transportation to implement a residential-permit parking system in designated parts of the city — including much of northern Manhattan.

One proposed bill would cover all areas from 60th Street north to Inwood and would allow the DOT to reserve for local residents as many as 80 percent of the parking spaces in certain areas.

Manhattan Councilmembers Mark Levine, Helen Rosenthal and Keith Powers said the measure is necessary because so many parkand-ride commuters from outside the borough take up spots in residential neighborhoods and then hop on the subway.

“For too long, suburban commuters have taken advantage of free street parking in northern Manhattan and crowded out the people who actually live in our neighborhoods,” said Levine, a cochair of the Manhattan delegation.

“Whether you live in Washington Heights or the Upper East Side, parking in our borough is an incredible challenge for so many who live here,” he added. “We can’t afford to continue as one of the only big cities in America that doesn’t have a residential-parking- permit system. This policy is long overdue.”

The legislation would limit permits to those with a New York state driver’s license — one permit per driver — and would be attached only to a specific license plate.

Another bill, by council Transportation Committee Chair Ydanis Rodriguez (D-upper Manhattan), would seek a citywide residentialpermit parking system. It would require permit holders to pay yetto-be-determined fees to park in their designated areas.

Rodriguez did not immediately return messages seeking comment.

Both bills would leave up to the DOT the determination of parking hours and the locations where parking would be reserved for permit-holders. The agency in the past has expressed resistance to such programs.

A spokesperson for Council Speaker Corey Johnson said he’s reviewing the bills.

Reps for the DOT and Mayor de Blasio’s office said they would review the legislation when its introduced.

The bills face a major hurdle. By some officials’ reckoning, Albany would have to give its permission to implement the program.

City DOT officials agree with that assessment, saying they believe residential-permit parking would require state approval.