Where and How to Park in Victoria

There is a variety of parking options in Downtown Victoria. They range from metered on-street parking to parking lots to parking garages. Here is an overview:

On-Street Parking

Pretty much any street in Victoria has on-street parking – if you can find a spot that is!  Be aware of signs that will inform you of parking info such as loading zones, residential parking only, handicap spots etc. Also be aware of painted curbs which generally mean ‘no parking’.  Yellow curbs are no parking zones.  Red curbs indicated bus stops. White curbs are loading zones for permitted commercial vehicles and are also marked with signs as to what times they are in use. After the hours posted, parking is permitted.

Residential parking zones are in place to ensure that Victoria residents have access to on-street parking on their block. These zones are signed as “Residential Parking Only”.  Only residents, their visitors or contractors working on the residence that fronts the residential parking zone may park there. Residential parking zones apply 24/7. There is no time limit to how long a vehicle can be parked in a residential parking zone.  However, to park in a residential parking zone, a resident is required to have their vehicle license plate number on file with City of Victoria Parking Services.  Residents who anticipate a guest (or contractor) will be visiting and parked for more than seven days can email parkingservices@victoria.ca with proof of residency (driver’s license or vehicle registration) to have the vehicle temporarily registered.  If a guest or contractor is parking for less than seven days, and a ticket is issued, you can email parkingservices@victoria.ca with the parking ticket number and proof of residency (driver’s license or vehicle registration) to have the ticket cancelled.

Most street parking is metered and is done through ‘on-street pay stations’, which are located on each street – and quite often there’s several on each block. You can pay by coin, credit card, city parking card or the ParkVictoria app, and the amount is determined by how long you wish to park. Simply go to one of the ‘stations’ and follow the instructions. You will need to remember the number of the spot you’re parked at which is indicated on a small blue sign at every other parking spot. You don’t need to go back to your vehicle to put the receipt in … the parking is all monitored via the parking stations’ computer.

ParkVictoria App

The ParkVictoria app makes paying for on-street parking easier. You can pay for on-street parking from the comfort of your vehicle using your iPhone, iPad, Android smart phone or tablet by downloading the free ParkVictoria app from the App Store or Google Play. You can also use any data-enabled mobile device to access the ParkVictoria mobile web application at www.parkvictoria.ca.  The beauty of the ParkVictoria App is you only pay for the exact amount of time you use unlike paying with cash or credit cards where you have to buy a set block of time.

City Parking Card

The City’s Parking Card is available for use at all on-street pay stations. A Parking Card can be purchased and reloaded at the Customer Service Centre at City Hall for a one-time administration fee of $10, and parking time is available in $25 increments. The hours of operation for the Customer Service Centre at City Hall are Monday to Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Note: City parkades and surface parking lots do not accept Parking Cards. The single parking meter heads accept coins only.  The advantage of the card is that you can load any unused time back onto your card when you return to your vehicle…as long as you remember to do so. Learn More

Surface Lots

Many of the surface parking lots around Victoria are serviced by Robbins Parking. You can pay for parking at the meter with cash, debit or credit cards.  You can also pay at many of Robbins lots with the Honk Mobile app which can be downloaded to your iPhone or Android phone.  For more information and to find lots, click this link. Robbins Surface Parking Locator

Parkades

The City’s five parkades were built to provide parking for shoppers and visitors. While some commuters can be accommodated, City parkades do not have the capacity to host all downtown commuters and are primarily for short-term use. The maximum height in all City parkades is 6 feet by 6 inches.

View the City of Victoria’s  Parking Fact Sheet & Map to see the location of the City’s five parkades:

• Bastion Square Parkade – 575 Yates Street  (361 parking spaces)
  
• Broughton Street Parkade – 745 Broughton Street (below the Central Library, 544 parking spaces)
• Centennial Square Parkade – 645 Fisgard Street (188 parking spaces)
• Johnson Street Parkade – 750 Johnson Street (232 parking spaces)
• View Street Parkade – 743 View Street (531 parking spaces)

Electric Vehicle Charging Stations

The Capital Regional District has over 100 EV charging stations scattered throughout the region.  For more information, click this link: Capital Region EV Charging Stations Map.  Some gas stations, such as Petro Canada are presently installing electric charge stations at locations in Victoria, you can check their website for locations and more information as when they will be available:  Petro Canada EV Charge Stations

Disability Parking

The City has designated 28 metered on-street parking spaces in the downtown core for use by people with a valid disabled placard on their vehicle. Drivers with disabilities are able to purchase up to two hours of parking time at these spaces. All 28 spaces meet the physical requirements of specially equipped vehicles.  The locations of these on-street spaces were selected to provide maximum accessibility throughout the downtown core.

A map showing these parking locations is available by clicking this link:  Disabled Parking Map

All business and shopping centres with large parking facilities have dedicated disabled parking spaces. You are required to display a valid disabled placard in your vehicle.