How does resident street parking work in Cambridge + Somerville, MA?

How does resident street parking work in Cambridge + Somerville, MA?

The short answer is that you need a resident parking sticker (or visitor permit) to park on residential streets signed with Parking By Permit Only signs.

Resident parking stickers allow Cambridge and Somerville residents to park their vehicles on city streets posted "Parking by Permit Only."

To obtain a parking sticker for your cary from the city of Cambridge of Somerville, your car must be registered with the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) in your name at your respective Cambridge or Somerville address.

Parking stickers are good for one year and can be renewed online. There is, of course, a fee.

Each Cambridge and Somerville household is also eligible to receive a Visitor Parking Permit. A Visitor Parking Permit is provided to the first person who applies for a Resident Parking Permit from that household. the Visitor Parking Permit allows someone visiting your residence to park on your street or a nearby street.

Parking by Permit Only rules DO NOT APPLY on Sundays or holidays. This is good news if you are visiting open houses on Sundays in Cambridge + Somerville and don't have a parking permit. 

Public Works mechanically sweeps each street in Cambridge and Somerville once per month, April through December (weather permitting). Signs are posted on each residential street indicating the schedule. In order to ensure that streets are properly cleaned, cars must move off the side of the street being swept to avoid being ticketed and towed.

Certain street do not allow for parking during a declared snow emergency. Keep an eye on the signs when a storm is upon us.

You can (for a fee) have a portion of a city street signed for no parking to preserve space for a moving truck or construction vehicles. This needs to be done in advance, as you might imagine. It can make a world of difference for a move in our out.