Pelham Parkway residents are urging the Department of Transportation to abandon its plan to start charging quarterly for one of the only free parking lots in the neighborhood.

The department says the fee would be $290 per quarter, which would come to over $1,000 a year.

Pelham Parkway residents rallied through the parking lot Saturday in hopes to save it from this plan.

Some neighbors say they are already struggling with rent and adding this quarterly expense would only add to their issues, especially since the Bronx is a parking desert.

Residents told News 12 that this free parking lot has helped a lot, although there are only 74 spaces, which is not enough for the number of residents. They say adding the permit fee will only make things worse.

"I'm like a prisoner in my own home…If I go out at night, I have to pay and park in the lot over there because there's no parking,” says resident Joan Marie Veltri. “Even when I come home from work early in the day, I'm circling and circling. It can be even an hour."

Residents told News 12 they will continue to fight for free parking in their neighborhood until their voices are heard.

News 12 reached out the Department of Transportation but has not heard back yet.