[Carfreeliving] enforcement (was: Muni tokens)

Wed Apr 13 18:40:06 MDT 2005

I agree that it's not always about people searching assiduously and fruitlessly for a spot and giving up.  I see people parking on the sidewalk in front of their house/driveway *all the time* when there's a legal space free right across the street.  They won't even drive to the end of our block to see if there's a spot.  As far as they're concerned, it's *their* sidewalk, so why should they park further away? BTW one family in particular has a 25x100' lot next to their house that they just use for parking their various working and non-working vehicles, but since they'd have to stop and unlock their gate to get into it, they just park on the sidewalk instead.

Meanwhile, there are people headed to the bus stop to go to work, or to the corner store, or to Precita park or Bernal hill to walk their dogs, or run, or push strollers, and they all have to go out into the street to get around the cars that block their path. 

This is what got me to put DPT enforcement on speed dial. And then I feel like the "bad" neighbor who's getting people busted, since they'd never get ticketed without me calling. This has got to change!!

apoplectically yours,
shannon
PS Emily and Rich, your messages are coming through blank (at least to me, a digest subscriber)

Message: 2
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 2005 17:09:50 -0700
From: "David Baker" 
Subject: RE: [Carfreeliving] enforcement (was: Muni tokens)
To: 
Message-ID:
<2140F08FF81C1A4B9DC61BC0ACB4BBC8DA4C46 at grub.dbarchitect.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

I think the "park so you can squeeze by" argument is such crap! we had
the genXers on our block packed in so tight in front of their
overcrowded apartments that 90 year old Mrs. Gomez had to go out in the
street with her walker to get around them. we tried talking to them and
they just went "FU". the $50 tickets did the trick and now nobody gets
them because they don't park on the sidewalk any more. and 99% of
sidewalk parking is pure laziness. you have a car, you live in SF, it's
a hassle, get used to it. no sympathy here.

"Mr. Mellow" 

_____ 

From: Mike Sallaberry [mailto:Mike.Sallaberry at sfgov.org] 
Sent: Wednesday, April 13, 2005 3:18 PM
To: Carfreeliving at livablecity.org
Subject: RE: [Carfreeliving] enforcement (was: Muni tokens)

I don't park it anywhere now except at Charlie's Motorcycle Shop
where it is in intensive care. 

Something else I've realized about calling people in...I've
noticed my neighbors pointing fingers at each other, speculating who
called in who and for what reason. Basically, the anonymous calling in
of cars and motorcycles on my block has created a negative atmosphere of
suspicion and false accusations. So, I can't help but wonder if my
little part of the city is a better place for all these call ins. Yes,
all 15' of sidewalk is clear more often, but there's a tension in the
air that wasn't there before. After experiencing this, I now do not
call in cars unless they are totally blocking the sidewalk. I used to
push my dad around when he was in a wheelchair, so I give the situation
the wheelchair test. If one can pass without problem, it's not worth it
to me to screw someone out of $100 and add to the tension. 

Most of us cyclists ride on the sidwalk at some point, hopefully
at a very safe and respectable speed and for very short distances. How
would cyclists here feel if they got a ticket or had their bicycle
U-locked everytime they did that? By law (unless posted otherwise),
adults should never ride on the sidewalk in SF, correct? 

"Let he who has not sinned cast the first stone!" :) 

"David Baker" 
Sent by: Carfreeliving-bounces at livablecity.org 

04/13/2005 01:54 PM 

To

cc
janemartin at SHIFTdesignstudio.com 
Subject
RE: [Carfreeliving] enforcement (was: Muni tokens)

And it only has taken a year plus a public hearing to get the
car space in front of our house restriped as official motorcycle parking
(ACTUALLY IT'S APPROVED NOW, BUT STILL NOT STRIPED), with no opposition
from anyone. this is after expedited treatment was promised by the
supervisors to get more in the street spaces for motorcycles so they
wouldn't have to park illegally on the sidewalk so much. 

Mike, I agree it's petty to call in with all the bigger problems
out there, but do you still park on the sidewalk after the $100 ticket? 

db 

_____ 

From: Mike Sallaberry [mailto:Mike.Sallaberry at sfgov.org] 
Sent: Wednesday, April 13, 2005 1:43 PM
To: Carfreeliving at livablecity.org
Subject: [Carfreeliving] enforcement (was: Muni tokens)

Well, you have only so much peanut butter to spread, and a lot
of bread to cover. If we make a big campaign to focus on bus stop
parking violations, we lose resources in other areas, like enforcing
sidewalk parking, preventing double parking on bus routes or in bike
lanes, etc etc. 

For instance, the person who lives on Hayes St near Divisadero
who has made it their personal quest to call in and have every
motorcycle parked on the 15' wide sidewalk ticketed is taking resources
away from what I think are bigger problems. And yes, I was one of those
people to get a $100 ticket...thanks so much. Prior to that, someone
(the same person?) was kind enough to put a U-lock around my front
wheel, undoubtedly seen as an appropriate punishment befitting such a
heinous crime, at least from their righteous point of view. 

Yes, I know that motorcycles can leak oil and are hot right
after operation, but what if they don't and are covered and are not in
the actual sidewalk space people walk? Is it really worth calling in? 

Thanks. I don't care if you agree with what I said...I needed
that. :) 
Mike

ps Does anyone else think it's fair that 3' wide, 400lb
motorcycles are ticketed the same amount as 3000 lb cars that block the
entire sidewalk and damage the concrete? I don't mind parking on the
street, but I do mind my bike getting knocked over by one of the many
inept motor vehicle operators, most probably recently transplanted from
a suburb where parallel parking means pulling your weekday car in next
to your weekend car in the double wide home garage. 

pps Don't worry Suzahna...I know it wasn't you that called in! 

> ...
> Why doesn't DPT (aka MTA) start enforcing bus stop parking 
> violations? Who would the lobby be that would fight that? 
> Politically, I don't get it.
> 
> suzahna_______________________________________________
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