The 3 Worst Tickets I have ever received and one that almost got me killed (a really long story in many parts).
When it comes to parking tickets, it is so hard to choose the worst. They are all so worthy, but since I have noticed several people showing up on my site lately with search terms like “rights when car towed for movie” and since I know that pain I’ll begin there just in case something I say will be of any use. We all know we are responsible for our car wherever it is on the street, but besides the occasional taxicab-yellow dents in the doors and the odd broken window with glove compartment contents strewn all over the floor, we do expect things to be pretty much as we left them. We certainly don’t expect to be ambushed overnight by our own city, and be hit yet again with another car tax this time in the name of that all American industry that we all so love, the movies. I don’t know what neighborhood you live in but on the Upper West Side, it happens every month, sometimes several times a month.
Yes, for the price of a permit that has been free since 1966, the city can tow you for any movie or television production location, but the good news is they do not charge you for the tow, they just move you to the “next available parking space.” Yeah right. I can’t find the exact rules for exercising your film parking permits on the MOFTB site, but a friend of mine has been in that business for a few years and this is what he says.
Film companies are not actually required to post signs on the block to alert you of their parking space permits, but the city requests that they give at least 24 hours notice before they start enforcing their reserved parking. When I told him that didn’t sound right, he told me of a time when a film he was organizing parking for had him reserve a bridge up on 158th street when they had given no notice at all. A whole lot of angry motorists woke up one morning and found their cars missing. There was mob anger and many threats but the log of where the cars had been towed was brought out and calmed things a little. One by one most went off to retrieve their cars, but the angry mob drove back to the location, complained of damage to their cars and demanded permit and company identification as they vowed to sue. Being sued was the least of my friend’s worries in the face of so many red faced New Yorkers wielding guns and machetes (practically).
In my experience film productions do give at least 24 hour notice and usually more which is fairly considerate until you are looking for a parking space and you have 3 different productions in your neighborhood at one time and one of them has reserved ten or twenty blocks or hundreds of parking spaces just for itself and most of which Brad and Angelina never even used. Then you are drowning in a sea of orange cones that look like life preservers that no one will throw to you. And before you go off on the parking guys who often eat, drink and sleep in their control car, remember they already suffer that dunce cone on their roof, and are harassed by everybody, the film crew, angry drivers and pedestrians, even the 5 a.m. drunks, and often get tickets for their control cars, usually having to pay unless they can prove their permit was properly displayed.
So we are responsible for our cars, but we don’t (can’t) always check up on them. Sometimes we are lucky enough to pass by our cars, like I was when I was walking my dog one night some years back, and see that the car is doing fine and all is well with the world. I so enjoyed that feeling of world peace that the following night I walked my dog past the same spot but this time found the whole block lit up and my car was long gone! In its place were a lot of limos and police and wherever there are limos and police there are also crowds. I worked my way through the crowd and asked after my car and I was told that it had been towed for the Seinfeld closing party. That’s right, our beloved Jerry had my car towed so that his and Kramer’s limos could park equally close to their cast party.
I protested and the NYPD officer on duty (a free NYC service offered to location sets) pointed to a paper notice taped to a tree. I told him, and the whole crowd around us, that I had walked by there last night and there was no sign. Judging by the sharpness with which the officer implied I was a liar either he was the one responsible for putting up those notices and he knew he was late or he was just sick of hearing about it. I was sent to “Jill” who was tracking what “nearest available parking space” each car was towed to, but she was having trouble reading the log and griped about inconsistencies in the tow truck drivers’ reports while she gave me several possible addresses.
Turns out my “next available space” was a bus stop and it had a ticket. So, with little or no notice, the city allowed the Seinfeld Show to tow my car to a bus stop where it could hinder or even endanger public transportation and where I had to pay a $75 fine, all for a f*#*ing party! My friend tells me that local traffic enforcement is supposed to be notified of the towing and not to write tickets on towed cars for 12 hours, but that sometimes not everybody gets the message. And he actually believes that! Then he claimed that the film production company should take responsibility for that ticket, but when I went back to complain about the ticket, Jill (you know, with the log that didn’t even have my car correctly identified and was so full of inconsistencies that it wouldn’t stand a chance of holding up in court) had apparently been misplaced or misfiled and none of the tow truck drivers could remember where they put her.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Sunday, June 26, 2011
New Parking Laws Go Bust (for now)
Last Wednesday, June 22nd, the Council Transportation Committee held a public hearing on a package of bills aimed at improving parking across the five boroughs. The results to date are in bold.
Proposed Int. No. 44-A: Co-sponsored by Council Members Jessica Lappin and Brad Lander, this bill would create one-day temporary parking permits. That way, for example, the next time you move into a new apartment, you'd be able to park your truck in the parking lane where parking or standing is otherwise be prohibited and not have to worry about getting a ticket.
Laid Over by Committee
Proposed Int. No. 231-A: Sponsored by Council Member James Vacca, this bill would require photographs to be included with certain notices of violation for parking violations.
Laid Over by Committee
Int. No. 301: Sponsored by Council Member Dan Garodnick, this bill would require the NYC Department of Finance to dismiss parking violations issued for the failure to display a muni-meter receipt if the driver provides a valid receipt from the time the ticket was issued.
Laid Over by Committee
Int. No. 372: Sponsored by Council Member Stephen Levin, this bill would suspend alternate side of the street parking rules on blocks adjacent to where film crews are shooting.
Laid Over by Committee
Int. No. 465: Sponsored by Council Member Dan Garodnick, this bill would require parking placards to have a barcode so that traffic enforcement agents can confirm their validity.
Laid Over by Committee
Int. No. 609: Sponsored by Council Member Joel Rivera, this bill would allow for an electronic signature for persons who contest a parking ticket online. That way, motorists who decide to contest a parking ticket online would not be required to appear in person before the Parking Violations Bureau simply to submit a signature.
Laid Over by Committee
Int. No. 610: When a parking ticket is upheld by an Administrative Judge, the violation can begin to accumulate additional fines after seven days. Under this bill, sponsored by Council Member James Sanders, additional penalties would not accumulate until 30 days after parking ticket has been upheld by an Administrative Judge.
Laid Over by Committee
While we're at, let's add two parking improvement laws introduced last Fall:
Int. 0113-2010: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to limiting the days that alternate side of the street parking is in effect in residentially zoned districts.
Laid Over by Committee
Int. 0375-2010: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to allowing vehicles to park on the restricted side of a street which is subject to alternate side parking rules without being ticketed if the owner is in the vehicle and able to move it or if the street has already been cleaned.
Laid Over by Committee
Are all these reduce parking stress (and injustice) bills laid over time and again because it's
a) just city politics
b) just pandering to voters
c) just not enough community action
d) unjust
e) All of the above
Proposed Int. No. 44-A: Co-sponsored by Council Members Jessica Lappin and Brad Lander, this bill would create one-day temporary parking permits. That way, for example, the next time you move into a new apartment, you'd be able to park your truck in the parking lane where parking or standing is otherwise be prohibited and not have to worry about getting a ticket.
Laid Over by Committee
Proposed Int. No. 231-A: Sponsored by Council Member James Vacca, this bill would require photographs to be included with certain notices of violation for parking violations.
Laid Over by Committee
Int. No. 301: Sponsored by Council Member Dan Garodnick, this bill would require the NYC Department of Finance to dismiss parking violations issued for the failure to display a muni-meter receipt if the driver provides a valid receipt from the time the ticket was issued.
Laid Over by Committee
Int. No. 372: Sponsored by Council Member Stephen Levin, this bill would suspend alternate side of the street parking rules on blocks adjacent to where film crews are shooting.
Laid Over by Committee
Int. No. 465: Sponsored by Council Member Dan Garodnick, this bill would require parking placards to have a barcode so that traffic enforcement agents can confirm their validity.
Laid Over by Committee
Int. No. 609: Sponsored by Council Member Joel Rivera, this bill would allow for an electronic signature for persons who contest a parking ticket online. That way, motorists who decide to contest a parking ticket online would not be required to appear in person before the Parking Violations Bureau simply to submit a signature.
Laid Over by Committee
Int. No. 610: When a parking ticket is upheld by an Administrative Judge, the violation can begin to accumulate additional fines after seven days. Under this bill, sponsored by Council Member James Sanders, additional penalties would not accumulate until 30 days after parking ticket has been upheld by an Administrative Judge.
Laid Over by Committee
While we're at, let's add two parking improvement laws introduced last Fall:
Int. 0113-2010: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to limiting the days that alternate side of the street parking is in effect in residentially zoned districts.
Laid Over by Committee
Int. 0375-2010: A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to allowing vehicles to park on the restricted side of a street which is subject to alternate side parking rules without being ticketed if the owner is in the vehicle and able to move it or if the street has already been cleaned.
Laid Over by Committee
Are all these reduce parking stress (and injustice) bills laid over time and again because it's
a) just city politics
b) just pandering to voters
c) just not enough community action
d) unjust
e) All of the above
Monday, June 20, 2011
New Parking Bills Up for Debate
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn is giving notice that this Wednesday, June 22nd, the Council Transportation Committee will be holding a public hearing on a package of bills aimed at improving parking across the five boroughs.
The hearing is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. in the 14th Floor Committee Room at 250 Broadway in Lower Manhattan and will cover the following bills:
Proposed Int. No. 44-A: Co-sponsored by Council Members Jessica Lappin and Brad Lander, this bill would create one-day temporary parking permits. That way, for example, the next time you move into a new apartment, you'd be able to park your truck in the parking lane where parking or standing is otherwise be prohibited and not have to worry about getting a ticket.
Proposed Int. No. 231-A: Sponsored by Council Member James Vacca, this bill would require photographs to be included with certain notices of violation for parking violations.
Int. No. 301: Sponsored by Council Member Dan Garodnick, this bill would require the NYC Department of Finance to dismiss parking violations issued for the failure to display a muni-meter receipt if the driver provides a valid receipt from the time the ticket was issued.
Int. No. 372: Sponsored by Council Member Stephen Levin, this bill would suspend alternate side of the street parking rules on blocks adjacent to where film crews are shooting.
Int. No. 465: Sponsored by Council Member Dan Garodnick, this bill would require parking placards to have a barcode so that traffic enforcement agents can confirm their validity;
Int. No. 609: Sponsored by Council Member Joel Rivera, this bill would allow for an electronic signature for persons who contest a parking ticket online. That way, motorists who decide to contest a parking ticket online would not be required to appear in person before the Parking Violations Bureau simply to submit a signature.
Int. No. 610: When a parking ticket is upheld by an Administrative Judge, the violation can begin to accumulate additional fines after seven days. Under this bill, sponsored by Council Member James Sanders, additional penalties would not accumulate until 30 days after parking ticket has been upheld by an Administrative Judge.
Speaker Quinn urges us: "If you're interested in testifying and/or have any stories that relate to these bills that that you'd like to share with us, please feel free to contact Nivardo Lopez in the NYC Council Human Services Division at (212) 788-9087/nlopez@council.nyc.gov . You can also email your comments and stories to us at speakerquinn@council.nyc.gov, and we'll be sure to forward them to the Committee's staff to be included in the official record for Wednesday's hearing."
The more of us that go on record, the better!
The hearing is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. in the 14th Floor Committee Room at 250 Broadway in Lower Manhattan and will cover the following bills:
Proposed Int. No. 44-A: Co-sponsored by Council Members Jessica Lappin and Brad Lander, this bill would create one-day temporary parking permits. That way, for example, the next time you move into a new apartment, you'd be able to park your truck in the parking lane where parking or standing is otherwise be prohibited and not have to worry about getting a ticket.
Proposed Int. No. 231-A: Sponsored by Council Member James Vacca, this bill would require photographs to be included with certain notices of violation for parking violations.
Int. No. 301: Sponsored by Council Member Dan Garodnick, this bill would require the NYC Department of Finance to dismiss parking violations issued for the failure to display a muni-meter receipt if the driver provides a valid receipt from the time the ticket was issued.
Int. No. 372: Sponsored by Council Member Stephen Levin, this bill would suspend alternate side of the street parking rules on blocks adjacent to where film crews are shooting.
Int. No. 465: Sponsored by Council Member Dan Garodnick, this bill would require parking placards to have a barcode so that traffic enforcement agents can confirm their validity;
Int. No. 609: Sponsored by Council Member Joel Rivera, this bill would allow for an electronic signature for persons who contest a parking ticket online. That way, motorists who decide to contest a parking ticket online would not be required to appear in person before the Parking Violations Bureau simply to submit a signature.
Int. No. 610: When a parking ticket is upheld by an Administrative Judge, the violation can begin to accumulate additional fines after seven days. Under this bill, sponsored by Council Member James Sanders, additional penalties would not accumulate until 30 days after parking ticket has been upheld by an Administrative Judge.
Speaker Quinn urges us: "If you're interested in testifying and/or have any stories that relate to these bills that that you'd like to share with us, please feel free to contact Nivardo Lopez in the NYC Council Human Services Division at (212) 788-9087/nlopez@council.nyc.gov . You can also email your comments and stories to us at speakerquinn@council.nyc.gov, and we'll be sure to forward them to the Committee's staff to be included in the official record for Wednesday's hearing."
The more of us that go on record, the better!
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
The Phantom Space (or Public Advocate Helps Fight Tickets).
Angry about school closings? Even angrier about the school parking restrictions that linger on, long after the students have been shuffled elsewhere, like the wandering shade of a Schools Chancellor who couldn’t commit? Join the congregation.
Tired of passing that huge space on both sides of a rusted, hollowed out fire hydrant that hasn’t worked for years but is menacingly haunted by the ticket agents of firefighting past? You too can be saved.
Are you a victim of last year’s DOT ticket writing strategy for parking in bus stops where buses no longer exist? The bus service, those routes, were killed but the rattle of their engines could be heard at all hours of the night in the DOT front office as the tickets kept coming in and we were supposed to keep paying until the news media publicly embarrassed the DOT and their Finance Department agreed to forgive any of those tickets if you were lucky enough to have not already paid [post].
Well now, contrary to what you may have read in this blog a few weeks ago, we have another way to fight off these malicious spirits, to exorcise those parking spaces held in limbo by the DOT and ransomed by you and me, and even help your fellow New Yorkers along the way. Bill de Blasio (our public advocate for the city of New York) has created a web page to speed the update of parking signs in areas where the reasons for a parking prohibition no longer exist and to even help victims of those improperly marked parking restrictions beat those tickets (call his office at 212-669-7250 and “we'll work to get your tickets dismissed.”)
What with those agents writing tickets with their sixth sense and parking taxes as steep as they are, even the ghost of a space is important.
Tired of passing that huge space on both sides of a rusted, hollowed out fire hydrant that hasn’t worked for years but is menacingly haunted by the ticket agents of firefighting past? You too can be saved.
Are you a victim of last year’s DOT ticket writing strategy for parking in bus stops where buses no longer exist? The bus service, those routes, were killed but the rattle of their engines could be heard at all hours of the night in the DOT front office as the tickets kept coming in and we were supposed to keep paying until the news media publicly embarrassed the DOT and their Finance Department agreed to forgive any of those tickets if you were lucky enough to have not already paid [post].
Well now, contrary to what you may have read in this blog a few weeks ago, we have another way to fight off these malicious spirits, to exorcise those parking spaces held in limbo by the DOT and ransomed by you and me, and even help your fellow New Yorkers along the way. Bill de Blasio (our public advocate for the city of New York) has created a web page to speed the update of parking signs in areas where the reasons for a parking prohibition no longer exist and to even help victims of those improperly marked parking restrictions beat those tickets (call his office at 212-669-7250 and “we'll work to get your tickets dismissed.”)
What with those agents writing tickets with their sixth sense and parking taxes as steep as they are, even the ghost of a space is important.
Sunday, May 8, 2011
San Francisco Parking App
San Francisco has a parking App. Last month the city launched an IPhone App that shows real time parking space availability. They installed almost 20,000 sensors around the city, 7000 sensors into metered parking spots and 12,250 into spots in city garages. NY Times article. The App shows when these spaces are vacated. I had heard Speaker Christine Quinn in February calling for such a system here but she was also announcing her reelection campaign, so I wasn’t sure she was serious. To begin with there were several obvious questions like could it even work here, how much would such a plan cost and how would it become available to everyone, even people who don’t have an IPhone. Anyway this ambitious $20 million system is born from the high hopes of the SF Dept of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration that it will ease traffic congestion and driver frustration, not to mention help them regulate pricing at meters and garages based on demand and competition.
Is it just the parking map competitor in me or does this way too casually spend very scarce tax dollars on a project that sounds as much like science as fiction. The obvious question I have is so what if a car pulls out of a space across town. I can’t get down the block in my neighborhood before one car leaves a space and another swoops in, or backs maniacally down the street or tries a sudden U-Turn, sometimes all at the same time for that space. Can SF really be much better? For $20 million I'd like to know the space will still be available when I get there. In fact, wouldn't this App alert thousands of people and make it more likely that the spaces you first headed for will not be available, but that, meanwhile, others will have become available? Kind of like musical chairs or parking in major urban centers.
There is all kinds of anecdotal thinking about how this App will lessen traffic, driver anxiety and car related pollution, but then something as obvious as an App that requires people to access their phones while negotiating traffic and pedestrians and, most importantly, while competing with other drivers using the same App seems to have left them unconcerned. When the App starts up there is a warning not to use the system when driving. That’ll do it, right?
Instead, I propose a parking map that shows at a glance how much legal parking is allowed in a particular neighborhood just by recognizing the time sweeps on a few clocks and the frequency and color of those of those clocks. This map could be available online and in print and through a Web Mobile App that downloads the book version to your smartphone. Been there. Done that.
Is it just the parking map competitor in me or does this way too casually spend very scarce tax dollars on a project that sounds as much like science as fiction. The obvious question I have is so what if a car pulls out of a space across town. I can’t get down the block in my neighborhood before one car leaves a space and another swoops in, or backs maniacally down the street or tries a sudden U-Turn, sometimes all at the same time for that space. Can SF really be much better? For $20 million I'd like to know the space will still be available when I get there. In fact, wouldn't this App alert thousands of people and make it more likely that the spaces you first headed for will not be available, but that, meanwhile, others will have become available? Kind of like musical chairs or parking in major urban centers.
There is all kinds of anecdotal thinking about how this App will lessen traffic, driver anxiety and car related pollution, but then something as obvious as an App that requires people to access their phones while negotiating traffic and pedestrians and, most importantly, while competing with other drivers using the same App seems to have left them unconcerned. When the App starts up there is a warning not to use the system when driving. That’ll do it, right?
Instead, I propose a parking map that shows at a glance how much legal parking is allowed in a particular neighborhood just by recognizing the time sweeps on a few clocks and the frequency and color of those of those clocks. This map could be available online and in print and through a Web Mobile App that downloads the book version to your smartphone. Been there. Done that.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
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