The annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) creates among other traffic headaches, a parking disparity within the frozen zone. During the two-week event, security forces inundate the predominately white, upper middle class neighborhood of Turtle Bay, between 42nd and 48th street and 1st and 2nd Avenue. Parking regulations turn in favor of Diplomat/Consul vehicles, encumbering those living and doing business in the area.
Inside the zone, parking on the right side of each street is designated yearlong for vehicles with Consul (C) and Diplomat (A&D) license plates. The regulation becomes applicable to both sides during the UNGA, and residential street parking is fully suspended.
The area’s vehicle ownership rate is nearly half that of the New York City average, rendering the parking suspension a mere annual nuisance for the few residents that drive. Morgan Holman, a Tudor City Place dweller, has lived in the neighborhood for almost 20 years and says residents use street parking only for quick stops and to accommodate their visitors. It is, however, those that work and do business in the frozen zone, without a service vehicle decal, that feel the parking pinch the most.
Luis Dejesus, concierge at 310 East 49th Street, drives daily to work and usually finds free street parking in the neighborhood, grappling only with alternate side of the street parking regulations. During the UNGA, he worked 10-hour shifts for 9 days, which cost him about $400 to leave his car at the iPark garage on East 46th Street.
“Not much sympathy for the other people that have to work here,” he says.
Unlike Mr. Dejesus, most drivers chose not to battle massive gridlock in Midtown East, opting instead for public transportation. Omar Pulla, a garage manager at Icon Parking Systems on East 47th Street, says business at his garage declined by as much as 70% during the UNGA, which has been an annual trend since he started in 2008. It was mainly diplomat vehicles unable to find street parking, and drivers working in the area that requested a spot.
Vehicles with C and A&D license plates aren’t the only ones transporting diplomats around the City. Drivers licensed under the Taxi and Limousine Commission (T&LC) often fulfill the same requests but without the same parking rights. Omar Imtiaz, a driver for Vital Transportation Inc., drove Iranian diplomats during the UNGA. The windshield of his black sedan displayed a turquoise “D17 Iran” label which cleared him at the security check point. It did not permit parking on streets reserved for Diplomat/Consul vehicles. Instead, he joined other Iran-labelled cars at the intersection of 41st Street and Tudor City Place, where he waited around for hours to pick up officials.
“If it wasn’t for us, how would people move around? So then why would you ticket us for doing our job?” says Imtiaz who must pay for all parking tickets out of pocket unless the violation is the company’s mistake.
Commercial vehicles that are permitted inside the frozen zone face a similar parking predicament. During the UNGA’s peak periods, commercial vehicles are denied access altogether and must arrive as early as 5am to do business in the area. Devon Brown, a Coca Cola truck driver, was refused entry to 43rd Street between 1st and 2nd Avenue last Monday when President Obama met with Russian President Putin. Despite the disruption, Mr. Brown was expected to complete all his deliveries as scheduled. He found parking several blocks away from the site, and used portable carts to roll stacks of pop cans to the frozen zone.
“It was tough to do it all by hand, and we still got two parking tickets,” he laughs. Brown got tickets for double parking over 30 minutes and another one for lane obstruction.
On Thursday, when most high ranking officials already left UN headquarters, the truck was permitted inside the frozen zone after receiving security clearance. Finding a legal place to park, however, was still an issue. Brown and his colleague, David Simpson double parked on 44th Street between 1st and 2nd Avenue in front of a residential building to replenish the vending machines.
“If we all decided to stop delivering because we’re being punished for parking, would this building have anything in the vending machine?” says Mr. Simpson.
Meanwhile the driver of a United States Postal Service (USPS) truck, Florinda Parker isn’t fretting about finding a parking spot or receiving a parking ticket. USPS truck drivers can park anywhere and are absolved of all parking violations. Parker, who used to work as an NYPD traffic enforcement officer says tickets can still be issued to USPS trucks but they aren’t enforced.
Parker did not have trouble entering or parking inside the frozen zone during the UNGA.
“It’s nice to be federally owned,” she smiles.
Those without such luck will continue to pay the hefty price of parking near the general assembly.
