I love our neighborhood. We walk almost everywhere and the metro is just down the street for longer trips. The National Zoo is our neighbor. For the majority of the year, this is fine. Yeah there are tourists, but we can take side streets to avoid the worst of the crowds. But, a few times a year, the zoo hosts nighttime events and the streets turn feral. Right now, it's ZooLights season. The display is great and draws tons of people. This is good for the zoo and local businesses. I 100% support it. The downside is the traffic. The zoo charges a steep parking fee. People don't want to pay so they park in our neighborhood. During the day, we are zoned for a 2-hour limit unless you have a residental permit. That stops at 6pm. So, we (*cough mostlymyhusband cough*) are left circling and circling for spots if we don't luck in to one of our building's few lot spots. It's rather annoying. Now, if parking was the only problem, I would tolerate the inconvenience and move on with my life. But, it's not. Parking is so difficult that people park illegally all over the place. They park in front of hydrants, the park overlapping driveways and crosswalks, they park in our private spots, and they park in no-parking zones meant for busses and loading. It's like the rules no longer apply. If there is a space, a driver will cram a car in - no matter how poorly. On top of this, drivers are frustrated which makes them more aggressive. More people drive through red lights, unexpectedly change lanes or make turns, and slam on the gas when they break free from traffic or see an open spot. It's scary when you're in a nearby car. It's terrifying when you're walking with your preschooler. This year, we're going to try to pick up our kid by metro as much as we can simply to avoid the chaos. It's less convenient, requires one of us to leave work early, and takes longer - but at least we stay off the roads.
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