Early storm doesn’t bode well for ‘new’ parking ban
Posted Nov 25, 2011 06:31:07 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The city’s traffic authority says the number of tickets handed out to drivers whose cars were left on the streets during Wednesday’s storm has him worried about this year’s parking ban experiment.
This year, the overnight street parking ban will only be enforced when snow is on the ground. Drivers will be allowed to park on the streets from 1a.m. to 6 a.m. in good weather, but will be expected to move their cars when plows need to clear the street.
However, after Wednesday’s storm, the city handed out more than 100 tickets and towed nearly 50 cars for impeding snow removal – and that has the city’s director of Transportation and Public Works worried that drivers aren’t getting the message about getting off the streets.
Ken Reashor, the city’s Director of Transportation and Public Works says the public gets reminders every year that under the Motor Vehicle Act, tickets can be handed out to any vehicle parked on the street during a major snowfall – day or night, any day of the year.
“People are not listening or just ignoring this, thinking they may not get a ticket,” Reashor said. “I’m not sure of the rationale, but to say they don’t know isn’t right. We’ve had this for eons.”
Reashor says drivers need to do better through the rest of the winter, and make arrangements for off-street parking in the event of snow – otherwise the 24/7 ban will be reinstated.
“We’re going to be very diligent in terms of ticketing and towing because we need to get the message across that this is about safe winter operations,” said Reashor. “People need to clearly make preparations in advance, so that they have a place to park.”
After this week’s major snowfall, there were more than 112 parking tickets written and 48 vehicles towed.
Last year, the city’s parking ban meant all cars had to be off the road between 1:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. This year, the ban will end at 6 a.m. and will only be enforced during snow events.
