Parking on the street and lots in Downtown Dubai will soon cost you Dhs4 an hour.

The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has announced that the lots and streets in Downtown Dubai will soon be paid parking zones, and that once the work to install the signboards and paid parking machines has been completed, residents and visitors will need to pay Dhs4 an hour to park in the area.

Unfortunately, seasonal parking cards will not be able to be used in Downtown. Why? Well because the area belongs to a private developer. Seasonal parking cards are also not able to be used in Dubai Media and Dubai Internet City (as they belong to the developer Tecom).

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The plan to start charging for Downtown parking has been put into place after a special study that looked into the area’s environment and the needs of the developers in the suburb.

Exactly when the parking spaces will become paid for has yet to be confirmed, although it’s expected to be around June.

This news comes on the heels of the announcement that parking fees in commercial areas in Dubai have gone up from Dhs2 to Dhs4 an hour, and that the 1pm to 4pm break in paid parking is no longer in effect, meaning you have to pay from 8am to 10pm, Saturday to Thursday.

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