The Department of Transportation (DOT) has been transitioning our Residential Permit Parking (RPP) program from an in-person, paper-based registration process to an online service with virtual permits. As with any new program, there have been some challenges. Residents who participate in the program have reached out to RPPFeedback@sanjoseca.gov with questions about guest permits, updating their accounts when away, and privacy.

We are continuing to improve the service and add new features, some of which we wanted to share here. We also describe the safeguards in place to keep your personal information secure:

Mobile App

One of the most frequent requests we have heard is the desire for a mobile app. Our parking team has been working with our vendor to develop one, which is close to being tested and finalized. The app will let you update your account and assign virtual guest permits from the convenience of your smart phone or tablet.

Guest Permit QR Code

The RPP program previously used plastic hang tags for permits, including guest permits. This allowed for the easy transfer of guest permits from one vehicle to the next. But physical permits invited misuse and fraud. They could also be missed by Parking and Traffic Control Officers if not properly displayed, leading to frustrations. The new system assigns permits using a vehicle’s license plate number. Users can save a list of frequent visitors’ license plate numbers in their account, so they only have to be manually added one time. Saved license plates can then be assigned a guest permit in a few quick clicks.

But what do you do if your guests’ plate numbers are not saved to your account, and they arrive while you are not home? You can assign a guest permit in advance. Or, they can ask you to enter their license plate number from the mobile app mentioned above.

Another option is to provide them with a printout, email, or text of a unique QR code (see an example of a QR code, above) that can be generated from your account at sanjose.getapermit.net. Then, all your guests need to do is scan the QR code with their smart phone or tablet and enter their vehicle license plate number. After your guests submit their license plate number, the guest permit will immediately be applied to the license plate number they enter. The virtual guest permit stays assigned and active until a new license plate is entered. Print out the QR code and save it in a convenient location, such as on your refrigerator or near your front door. That way, you will have easy access to your guest permits whenever you need them.

Customers also still have the option to assign and change guest permits over the phone. Please call (844) 357-4995 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Automatic License Plate Recognition Technology

This new virtual permit system works thanks to automatic license plate recognition technology, or ALPR. ALPR is a system of cameras that automatically read vehicle license plates. ALPR has been used by the City for over 13 years at Airport parking facilities. The Police Department has also used the technology for some time. In 2018, the city council approved using ALPR at our parking garages, lots, and for parking compliance. We use ALPR to make our parking enforcement more efficient, improve customer service, reduce fraud, and tighten revenue controls.

To use ALPR, DOT Parking and Traffic Control Officers (PTCOs) have some of their patrol cars outfitted with cameras that scan license plates as they drive through areas with posted parking restrictions. The ALPR cameras are not continuously reading licenses plates; they are only activated when specific enforcement activities are taking place. The technology will only be used to review license plates of parked vehicles already within public view.

ALPR will help with parking compliance activities in RPP zones, time restricted and time limited zones, and parking lots and garages. When patrolling RPP zones, vehicle license plates will be compared against an active permit list. License plates that are not associated with a valid permit will be subject to citation once confirmed by an officer.

ALPR technology scans and temporarily records license plate information. The software we use compares that data to information we have on file. License plate photos that are not attached to a parking citation are deleted as part of daily data purges. On January 1, 2016, California Senate Bill 34 went into effect, creating California Civil Code (CCC) 1798.90.51. The code requires agencies that operate ALPR technology to maintain reasonable security procedures and practices to protect information gathered though the use of ALPR technology. To protect this information, our city council adopted the Automated License Plate Recognition for Parking Operations policy to “define the City’s appropriate use, maintenance, collection, security, and retention of all ALPR Information, and the authorized users of the City’s ALPR technology, in compliance with all applicable federal, state, and local laws.”

The ALPR system does not identify any individual or access their personal information during the license plate review process. The license plate numbers captured by the ALPR equipment are completely anonymous. There is no personally identifiable information contained in an ALPR record. Vehicle registration information is contained in a separate, secure state government database that is not connected to the ALPR system. This information can only be accessed separately by authorized users. Typically, when issuing a parking citation, a PTCO isn’t required to access vehicle registration information. Additionally, PTCOs are not authorized to access, view, or use driver’s license information.

Even before we used ALPR technology, our PTCOs used cameras to note the location and identification of vehicles as part of their regular compliance activities. We delete that data, ALPR data, and other information used in parking compliance and permitting activities according to the schedule below: