ASP Parking: NYC Alternate Side Rules, Fines, and Suspensions

Alternate side parking in NYC requires you to move your car off one side of the street during the hours posted on the cleaning sign so a Sanitation sweeper can reach the curb. The restriction runs for the entire posted window, not just until the sweeper passes, and leaving your car there gets you a $65 ticket.¹²

How the Rule Works

Two city agencies split the job. The Department of Transportation posts the signs that set the restricted hours, and the Department of Sanitation runs the sweepers that clean the curb lane during those hours.¹

The point that trips up newcomers: the restriction covers the full posted window. If the sign reads 8:30 to 10:00 a.m. and the sweeper rolls through at 8:45, you still can’t park there until 10:00. Enforcement agents can write a ticket at any point during that window.¹

Most residential blocks in Manhattan and the denser parts of Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx have ASP on both sides at different times. Each side is on its own schedule, so check the signs on the specific side where you’re parked.

Reading the Signs

ASP signs show a “P” crossed out by a broom icon, along with the days and hours parking is prohibited for cleaning.¹ A typical sign might read “No Parking 8:30 AM – 10 AM Mon & Thurs” with the broom symbol confirming it’s a cleaning rule and not a general no-parking zone.³

Watch the arrows. An arrow pointing right means the rule covers the curb from that sign toward the next block or the next sign with an opposite arrow. When multiple signs share a pole, the most restrictive one controls. A cleaning restriction overrides a metered parking allowance if the hours overlap, so a paid meter does not protect you during the sweep window.

Sitting in Your Car During the Sweep

The most common workaround in the city takes advantage of how the rules define “parking.” Under city traffic regulations, parking means leaving your vehicle unattended. ASP signs say “No Parking,” not “No Standing.” If you’re in the driver’s seat and can move immediately when the sweeper approaches, you’re standing, not parking. Thousands of New Yorkers double-park or idle each morning, pull forward to let the sweeper through, then slide back into the spot.

The tactic is legal but has limits. You have to actually move for the sweeper. If an enforcement agent or sweeper operator finds your car blocking the cleaning path and you’re not responsive, you can still be ticketed. Double-parking while you wait can draw a separate violation. The safest version is to stay in the driver’s seat on the restricted side, pull out when the sweeper is a few cars away, and reclaim the spot once it clears.

The Five-Minute Grace Period

City law gives you a five-minute cushion. Enforcement agents can’t write an ASP ticket during the first five minutes of the restriction, so a 8:30 a.m. window is really 8:35.¹ The same grace applies to muni-meter violations, but not to traditional coin meters.⁴

Five minutes is less breathing room than it sounds. Some agents start writing at 8:36. Treat it as a safety net for close calls, not a plan.

Days When the Rules Are Suspended

The city publishes an annual calendar of days when ASP is suspended, meaning you can leave your car in a cleaning zone without risking a ticket. The list covers major legal holidays, a range of religious observances, and occasional weather or emergency declarations.⁵

The 2026 calendar has more than 30 suspension days. Some that catch newcomers off guard: Lunar New Year (Feb. 16–17), Ash Wednesday (Feb. 18), Purim (Mar. 3), Eid al-Fitr (Mar. 20–21), Orthodox Good Friday (Apr. 10), Eid al-Adha (May 27–28), Diwali (Nov. 8), and Immaculate Conception (Dec. 8). The Department of Transportation publishes the full list each year.⁶

Checking Status Daily

Heavy snow, flooding, and other events can trigger emergency suspensions that never make the annual calendar. The fastest way to check is Notify NYC, the city’s official alert system. Text NOTIFYNYC to 692-692 for SMS alerts, or register online for email and app notifications.⁷ You can also call 311 or check the Notify NYC feed on X. The city doesn’t publish specific weather thresholds; the call is made case by case, so alerts are the only reliable source.

What a Suspension Doesn’t Cover

A suspension lifts only the cleaning restriction. Every other sign on the pole still applies. A “No Standing 7–10 AM” rush-hour rule on the same post remains in effect on a suspended day. Hydrant rules, bus-stop zones, and crosswalk restrictions never get suspended for holidays or weather.

What the Ticket Costs

The standard fine for a street-cleaning violation is $65.² Late penalties stack on top if you ignore it:

30 days unpaid: $10 penalty added
60 days unpaid: an additional $20 penalty
90 days unpaid: an additional $30 penalty
100 days unpaid: the ticket enters judgment and the debt is reported

A single $65 ticket left alone for 100 days becomes $125 before any collection fees, which is why even tickets you plan to fight should be dealt with quickly.⁸

Towing and Booting

A single ASP ticket won’t get your car towed on its own. Towing during a cleaning window usually happens when the vehicle is actively blocking the sweeper’s path and an officer decides it has to move. The more common escalation is booting: the city can immobilize your car with a wheel boot if you owe more than $350 in parking or camera-violation judgments.⁹

If your car is towed, the retrieval math adds up fast. NYPD charges $185 for a standard tow and $20 per night in storage. Boot removal is also $185, on top of the tickets that triggered the action.¹⁰ You’ll need proof of ownership and payment of all outstanding municipal debt before the city releases the vehicle.

How to Dispute a Ticket

You have 30 days from the date the ticket is issued to request a hearing without triggering late penalties. You can still dispute after 30 days, but if a judge finds you guilty the late penalties apply on top of the base fine.¹¹

There are four ways to contest:

Online through the Department of Finance hearing portal, where you can upload photos and documents.
The NYC Pay or Dispute mobile app, which handles the full process from your phone.
Mail, with a written explanation and any supporting evidence sent to the address on the ticket.
In person at a Department of Finance business center by appointment, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.

For ASP tickets, the strongest evidence is usually a photo of the street sign showing the posted hours next to a timestamped photo of your car’s location. If the sign was missing, blocked by a tree, or posted incorrectly, document it. If the ticket was written on a suspension day, a screenshot of the suspension calendar or the Notify NYC alert is usually enough.¹¹

If you neither pay nor dispute within roughly 100 days, the ticket enters judgment. Once a judgment ticket is more than a year old, you lose the right to a hearing at all, and the only option left is to pay the full amount plus accumulated penalties.¹¹

1
NYC311. Alternate Side Parking and Street Cleaning
2
NYC Department of Finance. Stipulated Fine and Commercial Abatement Programs Parking Summons Payment Schedule
3
New York City Department of Transportation. Parking Regulations Sign Legend
4
NYC Council. Council Creates Five Minute Grace Period for Alternate Side Parking and Muni-Meter Violations
5
NYC Department of Transportation. Alternate Side Parking Suspensions
6
NYC Department of Transportation. 2026 Alternate Side Parking Rules Suspension Calendar
7
NYC311. Notify NYC
8
NYC.gov. NYC Parking or Camera Tickets – Parking Ticket Guide
9
NYC Department of Finance. Booting Frequently Asked Questions
10
NYPD. Towed Vehicles
11
NYC Department of Finance. Dispute a Ticket