Streetsblog created this amazing map of the placard abuses and no surprise, they are mostly in the neighborhood. Over the years, the TC has covered this issue plenty but frankly after a while it just made me tired — one of those things that the city will never fix despite a symbol of clear corruption.  But then I tried to drive down Broadway alongside a city bus the other day, and between the illegal parking and the fact that the feds have not finished the work at 26 Federal Plaza, the bus and I were shunted into the same measly lane — and NOT the bus lane!

In the map, Streetsblog recorded the 727 (!) cars parked between Canal and Chambers, Lafayette and West Broadway/Varick showing a placard or other “quasi-official emblem (mostly fake placards or agency vests, hats, safety helmets, fake badges, patches, business cards or hand-written notes).” That is 65 percent of the legal parking spaces. You can click on each symbol to see the placard.

I should let you read the conclusions on their site, but a quick summary since they are remarkable — or maybe just remarkably frustrating, especially given the efforts ALL of us had to make to get congestion pricing into the neighborhood:

• The placards are broken down into agency by percentage (federal law enforcement had 25 percent)
• 9 percent had out-of-state plates
• Some had covered or defaced plates
• The plates that could be run revealed thousands of moving violation tickets — as much as four per car

Cars with placards blocking turn lane

I don’t need to tell anyone reading here that these placards contribute significantly to the congestion in the neighborhood; damage small businesses by blocking delivery spots AND preventing legal drivers from accessing meters; and create hazards for pedestrians by virtue of their illegal parking.

Streetsblog also FOILed the NYPD to get them to release a list of the 35,000 parking placards it permits, but the department declined, arguing that “the names of recipients of the parking perk are far too sensitive to reveal.” It’s baffling, but somehow the NYPD made the case that they couldn’t locate the records, but also that the records “could endanger the life and safety of any person.”

Caution: reading either of these stories might make you mad for days.