Towing for 48 hours, does it actually happen?

[phoenixy.livejournal.com]

So I know about the 48 hour rule, but the 311 messages lately were the first I've heard that you can be towed for it.

So I was wondering--does this ACTUALLY happen to people? With no warning? I need to leave my car for 60 hours (plus another 12 hours on a holiday) and I'm okay with the possibility of a ticket, but towing--is something they just hypothetically can do, or has this actually happened to anyone who wasn't using the street as super long-term storage?

Comments

[jadelennox]

I know it used to happen 3,4 years ago.

[daft.livejournal.com]

I think it depends on your neighborhood. I've left my car in the same spot for almost two weeks (literally only moving it on street cleaning days) during the summer, and have never had a problem. However our parking situation is such that the spot I usually occupy isn't really in demand by anyone else.
Also my landlord is a cop, so it's entirely possible that I am enjoying residual cop-benefits and have an unrealistic experience.

[lyonesse.livejournal.com]

call the parking office and ask to talk to a human being. they may not be able to give you a useful answer (in which case i suggest leaving a key with a friend and asking them to move your car once), or they might be able to at least offer a specific exemption for your vacation. (if i were you i'd ask for four days, in case you don't feel like moving your car right on hour 60, or have a flight delay or something.)

[elbren]

You could also park it at Alewife for $7 / day.

[olszowka.livejournal.com]

A friend of mine was towed for this 2 years ago. He had out of state plates which makes the enforcement people more touchy. He brushed off his car, but did not actually dig it out and move it.

[taranwan.livejournal.com]

When my wife and I went on our honeymoon a year ago, I emailed the parking director and asked him if there's any sort of permit or exemption that allows for 48 plus hour parking. He said no, and the safest thing to avoid possible towing is to find parking off-street (a neighbor's driveway or have a friend move your car every so often. We ended up leaving our car at my parent's place in Haverhill.

I think whether or not your car is towed is going to be a matter of luck, if any resident complains about a car looking like it's been abandoned (a significant reason for the no more than 48 hour parking rule in the first place), how frequently the parking enforcement people come by your street, and how much available parking is around your neighborhood.

[sonofabish.livejournal.com]

A major pet peeve of mine. This law is so fucking asinine, yet the city is allowed to get away with it. Fuck you- I pay excise taxes on my car, I've lived here for 7 years, and it is beyond aggravating that I can't leave my car in front of my lawful residence without worrying that the city will tow it because they're too goddamn lazy to take 5 seconds to run my plate and find out that the car is registered to the house it's parked in front of.

No, instead I have to drive my car out to the hinterlands, park it there, and then take a bus back into the city.

It's as stupid and money-grubbing as those "no overnight parking" regs in surrounding communities. It's just an excuse for the tow companies and the city to rake in money and has ZERO to do with safety or keeping the streets clear of abandoned vehicles.

[frederic.livejournal.com]

When I was taking the subway to work, I got a sign on my car that they were going to tow it. It had gotten a 48 hr ticket and another 2+ days had passed. They don't tow immediately. Luckily, I got away with a $5 fine (2001?).

[lizzyclean.livejournal.com]

Just for some perspective, last summer there was a car parked near me in Teele Square that was left abandonded for months. Leaves and trash were piled up under the body of the car and several tickets were under the wipers. It took 3 calls to 311 over a period of weeks to actually get it towed. We had a small party when it was finally removed.

Why that car was allowed to remain in the same spot for months, yet tax-paying residents who go on vacation are punished is beyond me.

Good luck with your situation!

They only ticket if someone complains...

[jimmyfergus.livejournal.com]

A Somerville police officer, when knocking my door to tell me my car would be towed unless I moved it (much appreciated), told me that they only ticket and tow for the 48 hour rule if there has been a complaint.

Someone *really* didn't like my car, because it hadn't even been there for 48 hours (about 46). I got off the ticket by showing them the airline ticket I used coming into the country, 48 hours before the ticket was issued.

I also had 3 tickets in that period for parking on the wrong side of the road, two of them 6 hours apart. They let me off one of those too. That's another rule I think is pointless on a quiet residential street.