Snowbirds

[olszowka.livejournal.com]

Warning to drivers new to the area:  If you decide to switch to  public transportion for several days because of the storm, you still need to dig out your car.  It is illegal to park a car in the same place on the street in Somerville for more than 48 hours straight.  The city cannot easily enforce this rule most of the time, but the pile of snow with a car buried beneath it 2 days after the storm has ended makes this pretty obvious.  Violators are subject to towing, not just fines.

I'd expect that enforcement doesn't happen on Sundays & Holidays, but I don't know how those affect the time limit.

Comments

[elizethesleaze.livejournal.com]

is that 48 hours after the snow emergency ends, or just total? also is it true you can start your car and drive it like a foot and your parked in a new spot?

[secretlyironic.livejournal.com]

Probably 48 hours after the emergency, but I'm not 100% sure.

If you move it a couple feet you're probably fine -- but make sure your plates and lights are uncovered. Enforcement folks like to see those. :)

[mamajoan.livejournal.com]

The 48-hour rule has nothing to do with a snow emergency per se. At any time of year you're not supposed to leave a car in the same place for 48 hours. It's just that this rule is easier to enforce after a snowstorm, because it quickly becomes pretty obvious which cars have not been moved.

[craigindaville.livejournal.com]

My understanding is that, in general, you need to move your car once every 48 hours to prove that it isn't "abandoned". Normally this seems to only be enforces when a tenant/owner calls because the heap of junk hasn't moved in days and is parked in front of their house, but what the OP is warning about is that the lack of snow removal will give any TPO the opportunity to write a ticket, since it's been 48 hours since the snow first started.

Whether it needs to move a specific amount or not is not clear to me- what if you moved your car to run errands, came back 6 hours later and only the same spot was available? That would be something to bring to court. However, I think in most (non-snow-related) cases the TPOs mark the tires to see whether they've move at all. Anyone else have more details/corrections?

[craigindaville.livejournal.com]

Sorry- I can't seem to edit the post, so just replying here: Traffic/Patrol Officers (TPOs) are what they were called where I lived before. Here they call them Parking Control Officers (PCOs). Sorry for any confusion!

[chenoameg.livejournal.com]

And to the best of my knowledge the parking officers don't chalk tires in Somerville; too much water around. They do sometimes track license plates in their handheld computers, though.

[ringrose.livejournal.com]

In places where they chalk tires (which this isn't) they usually define "moved" as "moved to where they use a different color chalk". Back in high school where it was sunny enough to use chalk, I knew someone who moved their car a block. It got a ticket. They protested, and lost because the actual regulations (as opposed to the summaries on the signs) said something like the area is sectioned, and you have to move to a different section....

That's completely beside the point, though, since its only appropriate for non-residential areas with good weather. Which somerville manifestly is not.

[ron_newman]

When I still had a car, the main thing the parking enforcement people looked for was some evidence that the car had been dug out and driven out of the space. If the windshield and windows are full of snow, and there aren't any visible tire tracks leading from the car out to the street, you'll probably get a ticket eventually.

[somertricky.livejournal.com]

"When I still had a car"

This I gotta hear.

[ron_newman]

It's not very interesting. I didn't wreck it. The 1981 Toyota Tercel just died after slightly under 18 years of faithful service.

[meflaher.livejournal.com]

Last year they put red notices on the cars that obviously hadn't been moved (the same practice they use if someone complains about an abandoned car). If I remember correctly, the notice said I had 24 hours to move the car before it was subject to towing.

[dracoonfyre.livejournal.com]

I decided to try a new brunch place today. I stopped at Renee's on Holland in Somerville. Unfortunately I returned to the lack of my car an hour later. I was towed for the snow emergency parking ban. Unfortunately since I do not live in Somerville I had no idea, and even checked for posted signs before parking in a metered space behind another car.

I've paid the $115 tow fee, but I still have the $100 ticket. My girlfriend was laid off a bit ago, and with the holidays this is not a good time to swallow $215.

Do I have any chance for leniency/probation/etc? If so, how should I go about asking for it? I searched and found that apparently they are a lot less forgiving in recent months. I suspect showing up in person is best?

Thanks for any help...

-E

[arrowintwolakes.livejournal.com]

My impression is that there's not much leniency for Somerville tickets. I would recommend making this an individual post in the somervillemass community. I think you'll get a lot more feedback that way.

[icecreamempress.livejournal.com]

In-person is best. It would also be good to bring photos of the sign-less street to demonstrate that you had no way of knowing about the parking ban.

Good luck.

[mermaidcafe.livejournal.com]

According to the city website, it's 48 hours after the snow emergency ends:

PARKING, TICKETING AND TOWING RULES AFTER A SNOW EMERGENCY

Permit parking enforcement will resume twenty-four hours after the snow emergency has been lifted. It is the responsibility of the resident to clean off their vehicle and ensure their Residential or Visitor parking permit is visible. Parking Control Officers are not authorized to remove snow from any vehicle. If the permit is not visible the vehicle WILL be ticketed for Permit Parking Violation.

City Ordinance restricts any vehicle from remaining in the same space on any street for a period exceeding 48 hours. This violation will be strictly enforced on both the odd and even sides of the street 48 hours after the snow emergency has been lifted. Failure to comply will result in the ticketing and potential towing of the vehicle.

[whitefire.livejournal.com]

If they want to tow it, they'll have to dig it out first.

Bring it.

[gothic-hamlet.livejournal.com]

I truly don't understand how residents who happen to be out of town are supposed to deal with these kinds of regulations. I would love to go brush the snow off of my car... except I was hundreds of miles away when the storm hit, and will continue to be hundreds of miles away until Thursday. I'm parked over on Meacham Rd, and since all of my Davis Sq friends have scattered for the holidays, it sounds as though my options are either get a ticket on Wednesday, or somehow guilt someone into driving across the city to brush off my car.