‘People think rules don’t exist,’ officer warns as city launches massive parking crackdown – drivers face $110 fines

DRIVERS have been warned to be careful where they park – even if they have been parking in the same spot for years.

City officials express frustration with residents acting as if “parking rules don’t exist.”

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During the pandemic, San Francisco, California, experienced a drastic shortage of parking enforcement personnel, resulting in many illegal parking lot jobs going unpenalized.

As of April 16, however, the city’s enforcement staff has increased — and San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) Director Jeffrey Tumlin says the days of lax parking enforcement are over.

Even if drivers have parked in the same spot repeatedly without any problems, the parking situation should be seriously evaluated.

Otherwise, drivers could be shocked by a three-figure parking fine.

“In many San Francisco neighborhoods, given the shortage of parking enforcement officers that we have faced for several years, there are people who think the rules don’t exist,” Tumlin said during an SFMTA board meeting, as cited by The San Francisco Standard.

“We want to spread the word that we can finally start enforcing the rules.”

San Francisco has the most expensive parking tickets in the country, with standard fines ranging from $76 to $110.

If a bag needs to be removed from a vehicle, it will cost $550, according to city ​​data.

The agency plans to have parking enforcement officers focus on one district for a week.

With the multitude of tickets expected to be issued, drivers will be encouraged to pay special attention to where and how they park.

Micahel Roccaforte, a spokesperson for the SFMTA, said officers are instructed to prioritize safety-related citations, such as blocking sidewalks, bike lanes or obstructing crosswalks.

“People who park on the sidewalk, in the cycle paths or on the crosswalk put pedestrians and cyclists at risk, forcing them into traffic or obstructing people who use wheelchairs or other mobility devices”, reinforced a spokesperson for the Chamber. Municipal.

They will also enforce the city’s most recently instituted parking law called “Daylighting.”

The law requires drivers to provide extra space before crosswalks and intersections to increase pedestrian visibility.

With the new law, the city’s goal is to reduce serious injuries or deaths to pedestrians when crossing the street.

I don’t want to be sued… I think there needs to be some reasonableness.

Molly CalcagnoThe San Francisco Standard

Homeowners in the city have also woken up to fines on vehicles parked in their driveway for partially blocking the sidewalk as part of the city’s crackdown.

Molly Calcagno was charged $108 after parking her Chevy Bolt EV in the garage to charge it.

The rear of the compact EV partially blocked the sidewalk.

“I think there needs to be some reasonableness,” she told the outlet in a previous statement article.

She can’t park her Bolt on the street to charge it, and the one-car garage usually charges her family’s second EV.

Since it is illegal to run an extension cord from her house across the sidewalk to her car, she has no choice but to park in the garage and risk a ticket.

“I don’t want to be sued,” she said.