GENERALLY

Houston Code of Ordinances ch. 26, art. III, div. 1

in effect

Houston Code of Ordinances § 26-151 Designation of metered on-street parking zones and maximum parking time therein—Generally.

Sec. 26-151. - Designation of metered on-street parking zones and maximum parking time therein—Generally. The traffic engineer, in consultation with the parking official, is hereby authorized to establish parking metered on-street parking zones upon any street or portion of any street where it is determined, upon the basis of a traffic engineering study, that the installation of parking meters shall be necessary to aid in the regulation, control or inspection of the parking of vehicles. The parking of vehicles in such parking meter zones shall be controlled and regulated by parking meters. The traffic engineer from time to time shall also establish maximum parking times for each parking meter zone. (Ord. No. 07-464, § 7(Exh. B), 4-11-07)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 26-152 Installation of meters—Generally.

Sec. 26-152. - Installation of meters—Generally. The parking official, upon approval of the traffic engineer, is hereby authorized to install meters within any portion of the right-of-way designated pursuant to section 26-151 of this Code. (Ord. No. 07-464, § 7(Exh. B), 4-11-07)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 26-153 Designation of metered public off-street parking zones.

Sec. 26-153. - Designation of metered public off-street parking zones. (a) The parking official, with the approval of the department director under whose jurisdiction the property is placed, is hereby authorized to designate any portion or section of any area within any public ground or lands owned or controlled by the city as a public metered off-street parking zone within which parking shall be controlled by parking meters whenever the parking official shall find and determine that the use of public property or any public building, structure or activity situated thereon or adjacent thereto will be benefitted by the control of such parking, or access to such ground, buildings or activity will be made more readily available to a larger number of citizens, or congested traffic and parking conditions will be thereby alleviated. In the zones so designated, the parking official shall, with the approval of the department director under whose jurisdiction the property is placed, designate the maximum parking time for each parking meter, basing his designation on the fact finding above set forth. (b) Whenever so designated, any such public metered off-street parking zone shall be considered a "street" as such term is used in other provisions of this chapter and such other provisions shall govern the use of such zones by the public; but such zones shall not thereby become streets for all purposes unless expressly recognized as such by the city council. (Ord. No. 07-464, § 7(Exh. B), 4-11-07)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 26-154 Operation, design, etc., of meters.

Sec. 26-154. - Operation, design, etc., of meters. (a) Parking meters shall be capable of being operated, either electronically or mechanically, upon the deposit therein of United States coinage, and may also accept currency, credit cards, debit cards, digital payment or other forms of payment, based upon the capabilities of the meters installed. (b) Each parking meter shall be so designed, constructed, installed, and set that, upon the expiration of the time period registered for payment made as provided herein, it will indicate by an appropriate flag, electronic display, or otherwise that the lawful parking meter period has expired, and during such period of time and prior to the expiration thereof, will indicate the interval of time that remains of such period. Where a meter has been installed that controls two or more parking spaces, then the meter shall separately perform the above function for each individual space. (Ord. No. 07-464, § 7(Exh. B), 4-11-07; Ord. No. 09-2, § 9, 1-7-09; Ord. No. 2011-1175, § 6, 12-14-2011; Ord. No. 2023-548, § 10, 7-12-2023)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 26-155 When meter regulations effective.

Sec. 26-155. - When meter regulations effective. Parking meters in the established zones shall regulate the parking of vehicles between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. on Mondays through Saturdays except legal holidays unless otherwise specified on the meter or applicable signage. (Ord. No. 07-464, § 7(Exh. B), 4-11-07)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 26-156 Manner of parking in meter zones.

Sec. 26-156. - Manner of parking in meter zones. Within the parking meter zones, all vehicles shall be parked parallel to the curb, unless otherwise indicated on the meter or by signage, curb markings, or other control system applicable to the meter. For parallel parking, no part of the curb side of the vehicle shall be parked at a distance greater than 18 inches from the curb. Where one parking meter has been installed on the meter pole for parallel parking, vehicles shall be parked along the curb so that the front of the vehicle is located opposite the parking meter. Where two meters have been installed on the meter pole for parallel parking, vehicles shall be parked along the curb so that either the front or rear of the vehicle is located opposite the parking meter, as applicable, based upon the relation of the meter locations to the parking spaces. Where a meter has been installed that controls two or more parking spaces, then the vehicles shall be parked in accordance with the signage or other control system applicable to the meter. (Ord. No. 07-464, § 7(Exh. B), 4-11-07; Ord. No. 2019-1015, § 9, 12-11-2019)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 26-157 Payment; overtime parking and feeding meters prohibited.

Sec. 26-157. - Payment; overtime parking and feeding meters prohibited. (a) Parking in a metered zone during the restricted and regulated time applicable to the parking meter zone in which such meter is located requires payment in the amount applicable to that metered zone, which may be paid through operation of the meter as provided in section 26-154 of this Code. The maximum time to park in a parking meter zone is indicated on the receipt issued pursuant to section 26-154 of this Code, by appropriate street signage, or by signage located on the parking meter. It shall be unlawful to park beyond the maximum legal parking limit applicable to a parking meter zone. (b) It shall be unlawful for the owner or operator of a vehicle to park the vehicle in any parking metered zone without paying the applicable parking fee. (c) It shall be unlawful for the owner or operator of a vehicle to allow the vehicle to remain parked in any parking meter zone beyond the time paid to park such vehicle. (d) It shall be unlawful for the owner or operator of any vehicle or for any person on behalf of another person to deposit any coin or make any other form of payment ("feed the meter") for the purpose of parking beyond the maximum legal parking limit applicable to the parking meter zone. (e) Parking a vehicle in any parking zone in excess of the time paid for such vehicle for parking in such parking zone shall be the initial offense under this division. It shall also be unlawful to continue such violation, and more than one ticket may be issued for a continued violation under this division. (f) If a notice on the meter itself or applicable signage placed under section 26-155 of this Code states that the parking metered zone is not effective during certain hours or on certain days, then this section shall not be applicable during those days or times. (g) Exemption for vehicles in public law enforcement service. (1) As used in this subsection the term "peace officer" shall mean those persons who are defined as "peace officers" under § 2.12 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure and those employees of federal agencies who are authorized to carry handguns, investigate federal crimes, and make custodial arrests of persons accused of committing federal crimes. (2) As used in this subsection the term "department head" shall mean the police chief or his designee which shall be of a rank no lower than assistant chief of police, sheriff, constable or other duly elected or appointed official in charge of the department or agency that employs a peace officer, provided that if the peace officer is employed by a state or federal agency, then it shall mean the person principally in command of the agency's division, field office or other work group that is responsible for the agency's operations within the city. (3) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that the person who parked the vehicle is a peace officer and that he presents to the municipal court two affidavits: a. One affidavit shall be duly executed by his department head and shall set forth: [1] That the person was at the time of the alleged offense employed under the department head's command as a peace officer; [2] That the vehicle parked was at the time of the alleged offense owned by or in the service of the State of Texas or the United States or an agency or subdivision thereof; and [3] That the peace officer was (based upon department head's personal knowledge or upon the records of the department head's office) at the time of the alleged offense engaged in the performance of his officially assigned duties of office and was not parked while the peace officer was working at his customary office or job site. b. The second affidavit shall be duly executed by the peace officer who parked the vehicle and shall state that while the vehicle was parked at an expired parking meter, the peace officer was engaged in the performance of his officially assigned duties of office, not at his customary office or job site, and: [1] The vehicle was not parked at an expired parking meter for more than a total of four hours on the occasion during which the alleged offense arose; or [2] Although the vehicle was parked for more than four hours at an expired parking meter, the peace officer was continuously engaged in the performance of his officially assigned duties of office the entire time the vehicle was parked at the meter and was not at his customary office or job site. (Ord. No. 07-464, § 7(Exh. B), 4-11-07; Ord. No. 09-2, § 10, 1-7-09; Ord. No. 2011-1175, § 7, 12-14-2011; Ord. No. 2013-479, § 2, 5-29-2013)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 26-158 Proof of parking meter location and time limit.

Sec. 26-158. - Proof of parking meter location and time limit. When any person is charged with having committed an offense under this division, proof that a parking meter was placed for the parking space in connection with which the offense was committed shall constitute prima facie evidence that the parking meter was installed and the space laid out by order of the traffic engineer, and that its location and maximum parking time were designated by the traffic engineer. (Ord. No. 07-464, § 7(Exh. B), 4-11-07)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 26-159 Effect on more restrictive provisions.

Sec. 26-159. - Effect on more restrictive provisions. The provisions of this division shall not relieve any person from the duty to observe other and more restrictive provisions prohibiting, restricting, or limiting the stopping, standing, or parking of vehicles in specified places or at specified times. (Ord. No. 07-464, § 7(Exh. B), 4-11-07)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 26-160 Parking meter fees.

Sec. 26-160. - Parking meter fees. Except as provided by section 32-312(6) of this Code, the parking official is hereby authorized to establish parking meter fees for any parking meter that has been placed upon any street or other property owned or controlled by the city. The following fees are hereby established for public parking at any parking meter that is governed by this section: (1) Demand parking: A fee to be established by the parking official between a minimum of $0.31 for each ten minutes and a maximum of $1.89 for each ten minutes, which includes any applicable sales tax. Short-term parking fees shall apply to a meter during a time period for which the meter has been designated for short-term parking use upon determination that the public's needs during that time period may be best served by ensuring that the space is not used for lengthy periods of time by one vehicle. (2) Economy parking: A fee shall be established by the parking official between a minimum of $0.31 for each hour and a maximum of $1.89 for each hour, which includes any applicable sales tax. Long-term parking fees shall apply at meters during those periods in which they have not been designated for short-term parking use. The fees adopted under this provision shall be included in the city fee schedule. In establishing the foregoing fees, the parking official shall consider the cost of providing the service, the prevailing private market parking rates in the immediate vicinity of the meter, and the needs of patrons of nearby businesses and other premises to have access to the use of metered parking, as well as relevant traffic mobility and engineering issues, as applicable. Without limiting the parking official's options, a parking space may be designated for demand parking during some times and days and economy parking during other times and days. (Ord. No. 07-464, § 7(Exh. B), 4-11-07; Ord. No. 09-2, § 11, 1-7-09; Ord. No. 2010-1016, § 2, 12-15-2010; Ord. No. 2011-1168, § 13, 12-14-2011; Ord. No. 2011-1175, §§ 8, 9, 12-14-2011; Ord. No. 2018-366, § 4, 5-2-2018; Ord. No. 2019-1015, § 10, 12-11-2019; Ord. No. 2022-716, § 4, 9-28-2022; Ord. No. 2023-548, § 11, 7-12-2023)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 26-161 Designation of authority.

Sec. 26-161. - Designation of authority. Those duties of the traffic engineer under this division that do not require the exercise of professional engineering judgment or that do not relate to traffic-control shall be performed by the parking official. (Ord. No. 07-464, § 7(Exh. B), 4-11-07)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 26-162 Temporarily restricted meters.

Sec. 26-162. - Temporarily restricted meters. No person shall park a vehicle in a metered space that is subject to an access restriction in accordance with division 2 of this article. This section does not apply if the person is a permittee under division 2 and displays his permit or a true copy on the dashboard of the parked vehicle. (Ord. No. 07-464, § 7(Exh. B), 4-11-07)

Houston Code of Ordinances § 26-163 Disposition of fees.

Sec. 26-163. - Disposition of fees. Except as provided by sections 32-302(6) and 32-312(7) of this Code, all fees and/or revenues generated from the use of parking meters under this division and all fees and revenues generated under division 2 of this article shall be first expended to defray all costs associated with debt service and operation and maintenance of parking meters placed in service on or after April 1, 2006, and any remaining funds shall be deposited into the ParkHouston special revenue fund. (Ord. No. 07-464, § 7(Exh. B), 4-11-07; Ord. No. 2011-1175, § 10, 12-14-2011; Ord. No. 2018-366, § 5, 5-2-2018; Ord. No. 2020-348, § 8, 4-29-2020; Ord. No. 2022-716, § 5, 9-28-2022)

Source: City of Houston, Code of Ordinances and City Charter (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/tx/houston/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=COOR_CH26PA_ARTIIIPAME_DIV1GEFetched: 10/26/2026