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Parking within 20 feet of an intersection?
11/26/2010 3:39 PM by John M
A reader writes in looking for clarification on parking rules:
I got a $40 parking ticket at around 5:30 AM for parking at this space at 21st/ Leigh/ Princess Anne. I was in front of the purple jeep and behind the telephone pole handicapped ramp. I drive a VW Bug, so a small car. I have no idea what parking rule I broke. The ticket indicates being in a crosswalk or within 20 feet of a crosswalk or alley/ street intersection. If it’s against the law to park within 20 feet of all intersections, that’s news to me & severely cuts down on available parking all over the city. I’m wondering if anyone else around Church Hill/ Union Hill has gotten a ticket like this.
It can be annoying, having seemingly great spots rendered unavailable. It would be best if there were signs, or some kind of marking (paint on the curb), indicating where you can park, as I’d rather not pull out the measuring tape when I park.
There are some intersections where this restriction is important. I used to try and cross Venable heading north via the side street between the Church Hill House and the ABC store. On a normal day, it was a bit of an adventure; but on days where people parked right up to the intersection, I had to pray and just gun it (successfully so far.)
20 feet may be excessive on wider streets, but there should definitely be a restriction of some amount.
Since when do they ticket for any parking violations in Church Hill. I have seen people block fire hydrants and never get a ticket. I am always parked close to the intersection. I never block the crosswalk, so I don’t see any issue. There is no curb paint to tell you where you can’t park.
I thought the rule was your car, including bumper, could not be blocking the sidewalk. If your front bumper was behind the phone pole, I would have thought it okay – but if you were closer to the yellow handicapped sidewalk entrance that might have been the problem.
Agree with PTG in #1, there are some places where it really is important, and I think should be enforced more. The intersection of 25th and Franklin is one example, it is already a blind corner and when there are cars or big SUVs parked there it just makes it worse.
Would be nice if they either put up signes or painted a line, also agreeing with PTG.
I got a ticket in D.C. a few years ago, was following what I thought was the Richmond rule and turned out they have serious fines and regulations up there about parking within so many feet of an intersection at least in Capitol Hill. They don’t seem to have uniform regulation here though.
The rule in the city has always been no parking 20 feet from the corner and not across a crosswalk. If you are trying to pull out from a side street where there is no 4-way stop sign or light, it is impossible to see on-coming traffic if a car is right at the intersection. There have been several crashes in front of my house because the line of sight is blocked because of illegally parked cars.
Generally cars have not been ticketed but I guess they are going to start enforcing the law.
Bill, if you park behind the crosswalk, then you are not blocking the site of traffic. I agree that people shouldn’t park up to the edge, but the 20 ft rule is sort of BS when you don’t mark it.
I got the same ticket but in The Fan about 3 years ago. I was not blocking a sidewalk and was behind the parking sign so I was pretty surprised by the ticket.
I also agree that if this is true then there would be NO parking hardly anywhere. Can you imagine if everyone had to make sure there was a 20ft allowance at all intersections? Where would anyone park in the city?!
So I’m the one that originally wrote in. The officer that wrote my ticket was nice enough to return my call and answer my questions about this ticket. Apparently, they are entitled to write tickets for not being 20 feet back from any intesection. Although it’s not often enforced, she stated that it was a quiet night & while driving around felt that the intersection in front of my house was overcongested & unsafe. She thought she had to pull too far forward to see in the intersection. She issued 2 tickets at this intersection & 25 all evening in the area. And to clarify, I was completely behind the phone pole.
When I mentioned that I felt my ticket was unfair, especially in light of a blocked handicapped ramp in front of my house & cars parked at stop signs, her response was to return to the area & write 4-5 more tickets. Not my intention for sure! One of those tickets went to a neighbor for the 20 foot rule & he was parked more than 1.5 car lengths from the intersection.
My husband talked to the officer in person and she reiterated her desire to uphold her duty to write tickets when she sees ‘unsafe’ conditions. I question the real safety issue, am concerned about how many parking spots we lose if this becomes enforced, and am frustrated that $40 parking tickets are being given so freely for rules that we don’t know we’re breaking. Afterall, I and my neghbors have been parking like this since I moved here 6+ years ago & I’ve never seen a ticket. Signs need to be installed or curbs painted if this is going to become the norm. I for one think we have much bigger issues than minor parking infractions, but who am I to say?
I’m happy to see that the city is stepping up enforcement of this law. They should do it more often. Parking so close to the intersection makes driving into the intersection dangerous. There’s plenty of parking everywhere in CH, there’s no excuse for being so close to the corner. When folks make the mistake to block my driveway, no questions asked…One quick phone call to the police is all it takes to have the vehicles towed.
Kristen,
You can go to court and contest the ticket. Based on no markings/signs, a photo of where you parked in relation to the pole would be helpful. A case of “lesson learned the hard” way it will more than likely be excused.
I contested one in the city because of poor signage and it was excused along with about 10 others that morning.
It’s a matter of safety & agree with the rule as it is difficult to pull out on Broad because of the cars parked too close to the curb. Any number of accidents can happen from colliding cars to a pedestrian/bicyclist being injured. I inch half way out before I can turn because my line of sight is blocked.
You probably got a ticket because someone called and complained. One of the neighbors on this block thinks nobody who doesn’t live on the block should be allowed to park there. Parking nazi. Because of the weird traffic pattern, parking here can be difficult. Kristen, I’ve seen your car and other cars parked there many times. Your ticket is bull hockey. They need to put up a sign if they think its dangerous! And if they’re going to give tickets it needs to be consistent. But I’m sure the parking nazi must have called. Sorry this happened to you. That handicap ramp is huge and if you park behind it then things are safe.
Some years ago, I lived on Franklin St. up here, near a fire hydrant. After I got a ticket for being too close to the hydrant, we painted a little black line on the curb exactly the number of feet away where it was okay to park, on both sides of the hydrant, and other than when it was covered with snow, I knew exactly where to park.
I am thinking of doing that again where I now live; perhaps a few other neighbors will find time to do the same over the weekend. All it takes is a measuring tape, brush and small can of paint. Then the next time I am frustrated because I can’t see to pull out, I can ask the police to enforce things.
The parking on Princess Anne and 21st street is atrocious. Too many people shoved into the houses at the end of Princess Anne and they all have big cars – no wonder there is no parking! Plus many of them are students and let their cars sit for days without moving them. People should absolutely call and complain when cars are not parked correctly. Go park in the circle like everyone else and quit whining.
This latest parking ticket thing around Jefferson Park is insane.
Ok, so if the cops want to start changing the rules on us (for something we’ve been doing for 20+ years) then they need to do a little civil educating before slapping us with $40 tickets. And it wouldn’t hurt if the city did a better job of painting cross walks on the pavement, too.
I doubt the ticket-issuing officer is aware that the houses on Princess Anne Ave have ZERO off street or alley parking; we rely 100% on street parking. That’s why we’re bumper to bumper up here around the park
May I suggest “warning” tickets with no fine if the cops want to start suddenly enforcing parking regulations we’re just now learning about.
Elaine…stop whining! It’s the law! The city doesn’t owe anyone an education in common sense or a parking space! If you chose to live in the area, accept it for what it is. Don’t expect laws to change for your convenience.
This is an unintended consequence of the increased safety of the neighborhood: the officers have too much time on their hands! If that is the case, we should be grateful; however, I’d prefer the First Precinct focus their energy on Venable Street and parts north and east, rather than spending their downtime issuing parking tickets. We aren’t out of the woods yet!
It sounds to me that because the City needs money, they were told to give out more tickets. Pulling at straws.
The cops SHOULD be sitting in the circle, and going after the drunk speeders careening around the curve. They hit a car the other night and just sped off into the dark. They could make a helluva lot more money giving speeding tickets over parking tickets.
“When I mentioned that I felt my ticket was unfair, especially in light of a blocked handicapped ramp in front of my house & cars parked at stop signs, her response was to return to the area & write 4-5 more tickets.”
EXCELLENT! Blocking a handicapped ramp and stop signs is just reprehensible and beyond dangerous (not to mention classless and discriminatory in regards to the handicapped ramp) and I am happy the cops came by to ticket those cars. Again – this is now a problem because there are too many renters crammed into the houses and they each have a car. Think about it – the rental houses each have about 4 to 5 people in them and most of those people each have a car. Then they have guests over with cars, and it just gets too crowded. Parking permits for residents would be great, but it isn’t going to happen.
Laura, That’s just it: my “common sense” told me that I was parked legally & safely. It appears there are parking laws, until now uninforced, that I (and many others based on the tickets I’ve seen on windshields) didn’t know about. I
t’s crowded over here (moreso than ever) & giving up 20 feet at every corner will be a problem at this intersection. I’m all for safety & rule following, but drive around Church Hill area & count all the cars within 20 FEET of ANY intersection. It’s countless.
Other neighbor: What end of Princess Anne are you talking about? I’m the last house before 21st & there are 2 of us living there with 1 small car & 1 wagon. The house next to me has alot of tenants, though I don’t think they have particularly large cars.
Kristin, I am not sure if you read this site often, but it is best to just ignore laura (with a little l). She only post negative comments with no respect to her neighbors. Most of us are on your side and feel for you.
On a related note, I wonder if the parking 20ft from an in intersection rule is city wide. I know for a fact that many intersections downtown have parking meter spaces right up to the edge. Here is a good example: http://maps.google.com/maps?ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=2601+E+Grace+St,+Richmond,+Virginia+23223&ll=37.536674,-77.433664&spn=0.000565,0.001206&t=h&z=20
See, parking metered spaces about 5ft from the intersection in a busy part of town. So, we are expected to know about this 20ft rule and follow it when it is not marked or posted, but you don’t have to follow the rule when there are parking meters involved? I think the city is trying to bend us over(again).
Wait – so you’re saying YOU shouldn’t have a ticket bc other people in Church Hill are doing the same thing you happened to do and they didn’t get tickets? I just don’t understand, I guess.
@18 Consider yourself lucky that you’ve not been ticketed up until now. If you’re parked within 20 feet of the intersection it’s illegal. That’s not a law exclusive to Richmond. Parking in front of your house is not guaranteed. There are countless cities throughout the country where you are lucky to find a spot within blocks of your home. When you sign up to live in a location where parking can be an issue, don’t complain about not having a place to park. You chose to live there. It’s dangerous for everybody involved when cars are parked that block a clear view of the intersection. As for all the cars in CH that are parked close to the intersection, I hope the police start to enforce the law and ticket them too! Now, pay your $40.00…you were wrong. And there’s no need to be putting up all sorts of signs and painting crosswalks or curbs; the 20ft law is a given no matter where you are. Twenty feet is not that difficult to gauge…if you feel you’re too close to the intersection, you probably are. Should signs be placed everywhere stating that if you’re parked more than 12″ from the curb, you may get a ticket? Common sense..stop being so ridiculously petty!
James…it’s because of people just like you that our country is in such a mass.
Kristin – I am talking about your end of the street and one of the houses I am talking about is the house with “many tenants.” Another house on the street has 4 or 5 people as well. Really, all of the duplexes have between 3 and 6 people. That brings up another point – are there restrictions on how many people can live in a house together, unrelated? In college the rule for my city was 4, and it was to keep frat and sorority houses from forming. I would be interested to see if all of these people are actually on the lease with the different rental companies servicing this area. If they’re not, then sorry – I agree with the “parking nazi” mentioned by #10 – guests of tenants shouldn’t be taking up spots for days and if a car looks abandoned, then people should call the cops and have it tagged.
@14/18: Nope, I (and I don’t think anyone else up here) expects laws to change for their convenience.
I’ve lived in Washington DC and New York City and owned cars in both (street parked, not garaged and have never, ever felt entitled to a parking space in front of my house). I also visit cities across the US and drive and park cars in them.
Never once, in 34 years of driving, have I received a ticket for parking too close to an intersection and I often DO park closer than 20 feet to the intersection.
All I’m saying (and I think others might agree with me) is that if the First Precinct feels we need to obey laws about parking that have 1) never been enforced in the twenty-one years I’ve lived on this block and 2) are laws we’re happy to comply with now that we know about them, then the cops need to educate first, ticket second.
At this point, the First Precinct needs to reach out and communicate with us about what they now expect from residents (and guests) who park their cars in Church Hill.
Othe neighbor: um, kind of. Consistent enforcement (or non-enforcement) seems like a reasonable expectation. The fact that I’ve lived here 6 1/2 years & thought the way I parked was ok shows how little this has been enforced until now.
Laura, I am not being petty. I was genuinely unaware of the 20 foot parking rule until I got a ticket. I was confused by it and looking for insight from my neighbors here. Fortunately for me there are people like you around that know everything about everything. I don’t understand why you have to be so condescending & nasty. Perhaps I should take James’ advice.
I see no one read my post (post #20). The 20ft law only seems to be valid when the city isn’t already making money on the space. Add a parking meter, and you can park right up to the crosswalk. I guess that throws the safety argument out the window. Besides, if you are parked behind the crosswalk, it shouldn’t block any view of the intersection.
BTW, not all cities carry the 20ft rule. Many cities just state that you must part behind the yellow marker, which can vary in length depending on the street. Richmond is one of those weird cities that uses no markers, which is interesting since they have no problem putting up thousands of no parking signs downtown.
Dear laura, I am under 30, have a great career, pay my taxes, have good credit, and care for my neighbors. I think the country would be a lot better off with people like me. You, however, are hateful towards your neighbors and only follow laws that you like. I love how you care about safety here, but ignore the safety issue when it comes to keeping your dog on a leash. That is the only reply I have for you. Now back to ignoring the hypocrite.
James, I read it and I hear you! The inconsistencies abound.
Kristen, honey, you do whatever you want to do sweetie… Just make sure you’re not parked within 20 feet of the intersection. Okay?
Seriously, the 1st Precinct has much more important things to worry about than a few tickets given out for parking illegally. I would suggest parking farther than 20 ft from the corner. Better safe than sorry. There is plenty of parking on the Hill, god forbid you should have to walk a little bit.
People need to be more considerate when parking, especially in light of the 20 foot rule. I am continually frustrated by neighbors who like to “center” their cars in front on their houses instead of just parking a reasonable length behind the closest vehicle. They leave a half of parking space in front and behind their cars and that leaves the rest of us with no place to park.
The whining on here about measly $40 tickets is pretty funny. People are complaining about laws being enforced with regard to how they are positioning their private property on public streets – for free! You should be glad that you get to use city space to leave your private property; under any other circumstances you’d actually have to own or lease the land where you kept your property! Imagine!
It’s about time that the city hands out tickets for the flagrant disregard for the law that prevails with the entitled car owners up here in Church Hill. I have lost count of the number of times I have run across a car parked so close to the intersection that crossing the street on foot required going around the vehicle. Since courtesy to other road users apparently won’t occur without it costing some of these selfish folks the extravagant amount of $40, it’s great to see not only the enforcement but the hilarious complaining here which serves to warn the other selfish jerks that they could be next.
Laura may be contrary, but she’s got all you whiners dead to rights on this one. Ignorance of the law is not a legitimate defense against violation of the law. That you’ve gotten away with it as long as you have is no justification either.
The only way this behavior will change is through ongoing enforcement, and I applaud the actions of the Richmond PD. If you want to be able to store your private property without risk of ticket – follow the law, and show some respect to other residents in the neighborhood.
I agree with everyone who’s experienced having to pull into oncoming traffic to see around cars parked at an intersection. It is dangerous, especially for anyone in a passenger vehicle (vs SUV) who can’t see OVER them.
One other thing I’d like to add, for anyone who reads this: please do not park up to school crosswalks. We can’t see the 3’8″ fourth grader who is trying to cross.
James – could those meters be at intersections of one way streets where perhaps the line of sight would be a non-issue?
I remember there being a 20ft rule about parking near intersections. I don’t remember there being exceptions, but i guess there are.
Thanks kristen for the heads-up that they are now ticketing for these violations.
Since the City is now following the law, and safety of others, they need to continue by trimming all the trees near the corners every spring and summer. The trees also block the view of oncoming traffic.
James #20 and #27, I see your point but I think the metered spaces tend to be at intersections with traffic lights, not in residential areas like up here. Having a traffic light makes a world of difference when crossing an intersection. When there is no light, having an SUV parked right up to the intersection totally blocks the view, and there’s no traffic light to give guidance.
Katzenjaammer #34 thanks for adding the bit about kids, how true that is.
This started in the fan back last spring, giving tickets for parking too close to an intersection or alley, among other things. Here’s the story on NBC12 from last March 2010:
http://www.nbc12.com/Global/story.asp?S=12178795
Apparently the 3rd Precinct started enforcing the laws, and now 1st Precinct is doing so, too.
@sunny – I 100% agree with trimming the trees and bushes. Portable Sawzall anyone? ;P
If police are going to start enforcing this please consider doing so at this intersection, have seen many and almost been in many accidents here not being able to see around cars.
http://tinyurl.com/28adf5u
Kristen, your ticket does suck, it is the inconsistency of enforcement that is so frustrating. It would probably make better PR if the police sent out a notice that this was going to start being enforced all of a sudden. There are plenty of laws on the books that most people are completely unaware of.
crd, a traffic light shouldn’t matter. If it is a law, then it needs to go for every intersection. However, a simple marker could eliminate any confusion as to where this law was valid. Also, my houses front brick area is less than 20ft than the intersection, and is also higher than any vehicle. So, I am not sure that their would be reason to enforce in this area. My house blocks more than any vehicle could, if you actually stop at the stop sign.
It’s the law and has always been the law. Because people park too close to intersections many times you need to pull half way into the intersection to see oncoming traffic; instead of stopping at the stop sign like you should. Drive around the fan if you want to see how unsafe conditions are created b/c people either don’t know or do not obey the traffic laws.
Apparently, the only place you can park is right in the middle of the block.
http://search.municode.com/html/16….
My 2 cents is that I can appreciate both arguments. The law is the law, but it’s a very broad stroke. I think the more pressing issue is the inconsistency in ticketing. I also appreciate James’ observation (#20) regarding the hypocrisy of paying for a spot with 20’ of the crossing.
James #41, I understand your point. I actually called the RPD traffic division and spoke to a Sgt. Bowman. He said when there is a light, generally, there isn’t any enforcement about parking closer than 20 feet because the traffic light controls people in the intersection. The problelm is, as Joseph points out in #42, people who cause unsafe conditions by making drivers pull out too far when there is no light. This is the problem here and in the fan – people parked too close to an intersection where there is only a stop sign.
I got creamed in the fan because of that, years ago- I pulled out so I could see any oncoming traffic at a blind corner, and before I knew it, someone whammed into me hard enough to spin my car around several times. That’s why when I’m crossing the fan I only use streets with lights, not stop signs.
NK, that is pretty funny. I especially like this one
“Within 30 feet upon the approach to any flashing beacon, stop sign or traffic control signal located at the side of a roadway.”
So the city breaks it’s own laws with the parking metered spaces downtown. Also, with the placement of stop signs here, I would say 90% of us could get a ticket at any time. Wonder who agreed to this asinine rules. I am all for safety, but the written law really goes beyond real safety. I have no problem ever seeing around cars parked behind the crosswalks. The real problem is that many people park in the crosswalks. Now those are the people that deserve a ticket.
Tried to post this yesterday but the site wasn’t taking it…
My problem is that I have known about the 20 (thought it was on the books at 25 feet) from the intersection rule and yet haven’t complained…yet, I do understand the reasoning why. For people in high riding trucks and SUV’s the issues isn’t as prevalent as if you drive a low riding car. Especially if tall profile vehicles are parked right up to the corner and 2 feet out from the curb. I have to pull almost half way out into the intersection to see around them while at the same time look in 3 directions at once risking a collision. It is even worse on a frosty or rainy day. So yes, I feel that there should be marking to say there is no parking within 25-feet but don’t agree on ticketing people just because they do and haven’t enforced the law in the past nor have any signs posted. Advertise, campaign, make it law and enforce it if you are going to ticket people. Just like jaywalking is illegal but how many people get tickets for that?
Eric
I live in Carver, and received a similar ticket last spring right before channel 12 did a story on them beginning to enforce that rule. I was parked about 10 feet from an intersection, in a spot I had parked in since I’ve lived here. One day BAM ticket. I was pissed. The parking designations in Richmond are not properly stated or signed. There are some intersections with signs stating not to park in front, and some areas with the curbs painted, and some areas with meters within 20 feet! Seems to me if they are going to randomly start enforcing a law they should make the public aware. Painting the curbs, or flyers on people’s cars/houses would work. But I’m sure the point is to do it secretly so they can get extra money. This is the kind of behavior from a city that leads to mistrust from it’s citizens. You want to help a city out that says “hey, heads up, were going to start ticketing 20 feet from the intersection.” You get pissed off at a city that randomly begins enforcing something.
What’s also infuriating is that they ticketed for about 2 weeks, but then stopped. Almost every day someone blocks the handicap ramp that I got a ticket 10 feet away from. grrr
I saw a blue Volvo parked closer than that a few weeks back and saw an officer glance at the car then walk away. Who knows what is going on. Im thinking they just need to write a certain amount of tickets each month, then once they meet their required number they stop.
Lauren,
That’s how Richmond works unfortunately…the government is not here for the citizens…they simply take advantage of the citizens because they can. While I love living here and love my neighbors I don’t trust anyone that has anything to do with the city at all any further than I could throw them.
I wanted to bump this back up. My neighbors and I have all received parking tickets over the last week. It appears that since most of us park about 15-20 ft from the intersection, they had to look for new ways to screw us. So, now we are all receiving $40 tickets for parking within 30 ft of a stop sign. Seriously, what the hell are they trying to pull here? No other area that I have lived in has this 30ft law. It is not marked anywhere, yet the city can enforce it out of the blue. I have lived here over a year, but my neighbors have been here for 15+ years. None of us have ever had problems, and no one has ever received a ticket. Anyways, there has to be a way to fight against this ignorant law. It has nothing to do with safety, and is randomly enforced when the city needs money. The real question is, how do we fight?
Another reader sent this in to me this morning, said were on windshields up and down Broad and 25th…
I suggest that those of us in Union Hill bring this up with the police at the next civic association meeting and the CH people do the same. A little explanation on the seemingly overnight 180 on enforcement might go along way in easing some of the consternation.
John, I got the same sort of ticket, but mine had #448 crossed off. Where are we supposed to park if we can’t be within 30ft of a stop sign or 20ft of a crosswalk. Now, even though I don’t agree with ticketing people parking up to the intersection (it isn’t marked, so how are outsiders supposed to know better), I can somewhat understand why this would be enforced due to safety. However, if you are 10ft behind the stop sign or intersection, you are not blocking anything. No wonder the city can’t keep people from moving out to the suburbs. The city doesn’t care about the people who live here.
Well Jame,s it appears as though you were aware of the law since you posted on this thread on Nov 30th. You chose to ignore the law so you’re being justifiably ticketed. It IS all about safety and I’m glad the city is enforcing it. The law is the same in just about EVERY city. The same is true for parking within 15′ of a fire hydrant. Your ignorance is no excuse for the law. Complain all you want…it won’t change a thing. Pay your fine and move on…and. stay away from the intersection. There’s plenty of street parking everywhere in CH.
The inconsistency on enforcing these “parking distances” is unforgivable. When did these ordinances go into effect? How can one live here over 20 years and never receive a ticket for this kind of thing, ’till now?
Generally, I think the women and men of the First Precinct are brave, smart, and work very hard to fight “real” crime.
But this recent rash of ticketing just stinks. I can’t help but wonder if the 1stPr. is even involved in this madness.
Lt. Laino (or another in his stead) attends all our civic association meetings on a regular basis. He’s great at telling us about neighborhood/police initiatives. But what happened here? How come no advance notice?
I’m scratching my head in disbelief over this. Just doesn’t seem right.
laura, please tell me how parking 30ft vs 10ft from a stop sign is making anyone safer. Due to the odd placement of stop signs in the historical district (Grace and Franklin), even at 10ft behind the stop sign, you would be parked behind the corner houses. At 30ft, I am now parking near my back cellar door. So, if I am not blocking someone’s vision, I am not sure how ticketing is justifiable. I shouldn’t really post replies to you anyways. You have already expressed how little you care about your neighbors. I would be surprised if you even live in church hill.
James, agreed. Pay her no mind. She never has anything good to say!
The law isn’t valid – it has been ignored by both the police, who rarely write tickets for it, and the citizens who flagrantly violate it. If it were valid there would be no need for the “No Parking Here to Corner” signs, nor would the City be allowed to have parking meters at corners, of which there are plenty at intersections without stoplights or stop signs. The law is based on an arbitrary figure of 20′, so by convention it is mostly ignored. Doesn’t that also mean you have to carry a tape measure with you?
@58. Well then I suggest you lobby your representative to have the law changed. Until then, it’s the law. You folks are ridiculous…whine all you want, there are plenty of reasonable people who see the value in not parking so close to the intersection where clear sight lines (to on-coming cars and pedestrians) would be obstructed. It’s not going to change–stop the lunacy.
ah i see the old ladies are still in control of this website. hey james now that YOU got a ticket its an outrage huh?thats why i onbly need to look at this site once a month now! do you ever wonder why the same ten people post?. with your anonymous kvetching and closeminded whining you have killed the community spirit that once pervaded this site. thanks to ALL you sad little people and to those of you that use your real name thank you. too bad people want to hide behind freedom of speech to justify their meanspirited sniping. sad ,very sad. now go ahead and whine some more. its no substitute for honesty in conversation.oh and if you cite the “SAFETY ” factor in your cyber secrets do you really think you are important enough to make anybody track you down ?arrogance and stupidity are no substitute for honesty of intention. i invite anyone who would like to have a meaningful chat to contact me on facebook. they make you use your real name posers!
I am contesting my ticket, with photos to show where I was parked, which I still don’t believe to be unsafe. Elaine, it is a first precinct officer. I spoke to her on the phone & all I can say is she’s *highly* motivated to hand out all these tickets despite the fact that we all know these laws had never been enforced before. She even encouraged me to contest it if I felt wronged. I suggest everyone that has the time & motivation to do so contest their ticket. Maybe then the city or Precinct will take notice & consider a ticketing or signage system that’s more fair than the current “it’s a quiet night so let’s ticket a bunch of people for parking the same way they do every other night of the year.”
Anyone that believes there’s plenty of parking if you cut out 20 feet from every intersection & 30 feet from every stop sign is entirely wrong.
@60..the same 10 old ladies..then, of course, you!
“Anyone that believes there’s plenty of parking if you cut out 20 feet from every intersection & 30 feet from every stop sign is entirely wrong.” A little DRAMA, anyone?
Visited friends in the Fan last night… OMG! The amount of money the city could make off ticketing all those “wrongly” parked cars (ours included) could probably pay for 2 or 3 brand new elementary schools.
Oh, but I guess if you want to take part in this new mode of raising money for the city’s coffers–and clogging up our traffic court– you gotta come to Church Hill.
It’s too bad citizens in our sister ‘hoods like Carver, Jackson Ward the Fan and Oregon Hill, can’t take part in this exciting new city initiative for municipal funding. Guess we’re just special up here on ‘the Hill’.
Wow buddy, your post has absolutely nothing to do with this topic and is almost illegible. You may want to put down the bottle and sober up before you go ranting on a public forum. John, this guy must be your friend. I know I would ban him from posting on any forum I controlled.
Kristen, I will probably fight it. It is about as silly as ticketing for jaywalking when there are no cars on the road. As I have said before, my house blocks more of the road view than any vehicle parked 10ft behind the stop sign.
Laura, No drama, straight fact.
Why do some of you keep parking in the handicapped parking spots? I mean, you know they’re there. They have been there for months at this point. It’s really classless and rude that you have the balls to park in them just bc there are no other spots. There are people on the street that use walking aids – I can assure you that they would trade your working legs and health for their parking spot and insanely high medical bills.
#67, I’m not sure which one (or more than one) you are referring to but I know someone who has a designated handicapped spot and if I saw someone else parked in it, I would not hesitate to call the police non-emergency number (646-5100) and report them. I may get some heat for posting that, but the woman I am thinking of would definitely appreciate it.
I think there’s a pretty hefty fine for parking illegally in a hanidcapped zone, too. I would hope that one ticket would discourage any repeat violators.
crd, I agree with you. While I think the law about parking 30ft from a stop sign is retarded and illogical on all fronts, I do hate when non-handicapped people park in the handicap spaces. Call the police and they will come out to give a ticket or tow em away.
BTW, I noticed a police car parked on 25th and Franklin almost on the crosswalk (right to the edge of the sidewalk). Obviously cops don’t even really know the law. I am so calling the police next time I see that. We will see if they hold a double standard for one of their own.
James,
They do that because we all know the laws don’t apply to the cops. Right?
SEW I don’t agree, and if I saw that cop car I’d take a couple of pictures of it to be able to prove my case, plus I’d call the non-emergency number. I would also send the pictures to Lt. Laino up at First Precinct just to make my point (but then, I get a bit carried away when I get ticked off and want to make a point like that LOL). If 20 feet (James, I think it is 20 and not 30) applies to others, than it applies to cops unless they are investigating a crime and that was the only open parking spot.
James, glad we are in agreement. The woman I know who has a spot is really not able to walk far, and it would seriously tick me off if someone stole her spot.
crd, the law states that you must be 30ft from stop signs and 20ft from crosswalks. No exaggeration needed. My friends from SC were in for the weekend, and I told them about the law. They thought I was lying. They also asked where the signs were to warn people that they had to park so far from the stop signs. I just let them know that the city only has our best interests in mind (or our money, I can’t remember which was first).
James, I didn’t know it was that much from stop signs. Washington D.C. has something similar, and no one warned me about it. I got a ticket for something like $100 there, and had no clue what it was about until my hostess for the weekend enlightened me. I wanted signs at the intersection too. At least you warned your friends who were visiting here.
Quite frankly, if my neighbors all obeyed that law, there would definately not be enough room for us all to park on our block. I’d rather let a sleeping dog lie than to suddenly start getting tickets because there is no other place to park.
Just another reminder about parking: There’s no parking, baby. No parking on the dance floor.
This is becoming a problem again especially with the low sun in the morning. Vehicles parked up to an intersection and out away from the curb forces cars to pull way out into the intersection blindlly to see around them causing a hazard. Keep in mind the City Code that is a $40 fine:
City Parking Code
Richmond VA Code of Ordinances
Traffic & Vehicle
Article VI
Division 1
Section: 102-222
Paragraph (a)
No parking…
Line 5: On Crosswalk (meaning where the sidewalk meets the curb)
Line 6: Within 20 feet of a crosswalk at an intersection.(means no vehicles within 20 feet of the corner curb).
$40 fine
No parking 20 feet from the curb @ an intersection!? Wow, wouldn’t it be great if all the fines from tickets would go into a fund to help pay for real mass-transit? Maybe if we had light rail (to places like Fan/Carytown/Willow Lawn/Short Pump/Southside,) people wouldn’t feel that having 1 car per person is a necessity in RVA. Or atleast we could use the fines for real bike lanes. Simply riding a bike to work/the store wouldn’t be considered a death defying/injury defying option.
There is mas transit to go to all of the places you mentioned in RVA. Maybe you shoudl park your car in a legal spot and check out the GRTC Website. http://www.grtcbustracker.com/bustime/home.jsp
Tools, why the edge? Sorry, but let’s not confuse the GRTC with light rail which is considerably faster and by far more convenient. No standing in the weather waiting….waiting…..for the bus to come, no lame driver maneuvers (check out the dis-regard for the stop sign at Marshall and 23rd St) just for starters. Light rail and bikes would be perfect.
Yeah, whatever happened with that GRTC light rail project anyway? Went the way of the dodo like the people running the city? Full of empty promises.
@80 – Dodos would be overqualified for city jobs.
My guess is they probably didn’t do enough million dollar studies on it.
I tried parking my car and riding the bus. The bus is nasty. And slow. From Church Hill to Carytown is an hour.