[Carfreeliving] enforcement
Amber Elizabeth Crabbe
amber at transcoalition.org
Thu Apr 14 11:21:04 MDT 2005
I don't know what typical response time is between calling and actual
ticketing--I usually call, walk over the car blocking my path, and
continue on my way--but I can't imagine they rush. It seems like this
naturally allows for car drivers to avoid called-in ticketing if they're
really only loading/unloading, etc for a short period of time--whether
or not we can agree that this should be allowed or not. I personally
think if a car driver feels they really need to block someone's right of
way, they should double park in the street and inconvenience their
fellow car drivers instead of blocking/endangering sidewalk users. This
may be inconvenient for bicyclists, but as someone who bikes and walks,
I can say double parked cars annoy me FAR less than cars on sidewalks.
Also, has anyone else had the DPT folks refuse to take information if
they don't live in the immediate neighborhood? Or if they can't give
them an exact address of the car parked on the sidewalk? As if I don't
have a right to be using the sidewalk in another part of town!
amber
-----Original Message-----
From: Carfreeliving-bounces at livablecity.org
[mailto:Carfreeliving-bounces at livablecity.org] On Behalf Of Joshua
Switzky
Sent: Thursday, April 14, 2005 8:45 AM
To: jhenders at sbcglobal.net
Cc: Brinkman, Cheryl; Carfreeliving at livablecity.org;
Carfreeliving-bounces at livablecity.org
Subject: Re: [Carfreeliving] enforcement
Jason has hit on an important point, which that in aggregate, every
minor
"temporary" parking on the sidewalk that possibly deserves some leniency
leads to an unquestionably inacceptable situation overall. That's why
we
need to stripe white and blue zones on the curb in more places.
Additionally, if we didn't have so many gosh-darn garages for every 2
and
3-unit building then we would have 50% more available curb space to both
create loading zones as well as more public on-street parking. Every
curb
cut is not only the elimination of one on-street public on-street
parking
space, but is the privatization of the parking supply from one that the
city can regulate and control to a private one. Additionally, it
privatizes
the width of the curb cut to one that garage users feel entitled to.
Every
curb cut basically not only creates private off-street parking but
private
on-street parking, because the garage owner/user can freely park
on-street
blocking the curb cut, but no one else can. It's totally outrageous. I
think every curb cut should require the garage owner to compensate the
city
for annual real cost of an on-street public parking space, which would
be
thousands of dollars. And so when people park in these curb cut spaces
they
even elminate the defacto on-street loading zones that curb cuts create.
I've even had this problem with my own small building. For instance,
while
no residents in my unit or the one below me own cars, the tenants
(recently
moved in) above own 2, and they have an agreement with the landlord that
they can use the 2 spaces in the garage. However they also feel entitled
to
park in the curb cut space as well. So they essentially feel entitled to
three spaces, the two in the garage and one in front of the curb cut,
which
means when I need to even unload things from a rental car, I don't even
have access to the "loading space."
-j
Jason Henderson
<jhenders at sbcglobal.net> To:
"Brinkman, Cheryl" <Cheryl.Brinkman at McKesson.com>
Sent by: cc:
Carfreeliving at livablecity.org
Carfreeliving-bounces at liva Subject: Re:
[Carfreeliving] enforcement
blecity.org
04/14/2005 09:03 AM
Please respond to jhenders
There is a downside in looking the other way on the supposedly
infrequent or quick sidewalk parkers. For example, on Page street the
aggregate of multiple people pulling their cars up to unload and load,
even for quick errands, is that the Page sidewalks are constantly
blocked, especially on Saturdays and Sundays. Each motorist has a
reason, each for 5 minutes or so, and some might be construed as valid.
But in sum, cars are scattered everywhere along the length of the
sidewalk in the Lower Haight - ALL DAY LONG.
I get a sense that the sidewalk parkers feel that pedestrian space is
the easiest space to appropriate, and so it becomes "second nature" to
pull up and partially or fully block the sidewalk.
I have often thought that disabled and elderly motorist needs can be met
by appropriating carspace, and not pedestrian space. For example by
painting the curb in front of the house "handicapped" or by requiring a
loading zone on every segment of street, perhaps at mid-block. But in
these "special needs" cases, the burden should not be on the pedestrian
to suck it up and deal. Rather, the burden should be on motorists.
-jh
Brinkman, Cheryl wrote:
> Agreed - even me - one of the most adamant no cars on the darn
sidewalks
>person - I recognize the loading unloading emergency plumbing truck on
the
>sidewalk situation. I do not call those vehicles in. The construction
>worker down Ashbury who routinely parks his work truck on the sidewalk
in
>front of his home in the evening - him I call in. If he were at a job
site
>down the street from me and parked on the sidewalk for an hour or two
while
>doing a job - no, I wouldn't call him in. We had an emergency plumbing
>situation and the truck was halfway on the sidewalk for several hours -
I
>felt horrible but there was little alternative until a spot opened up
and
we
>had the plumber move off the sidewalk.
>
>Mike - what most of us are talking about are the people who are too
lazy
or
>too cheap to park legally. NO ONE gets to park on the sidewalk
overnight
or
>all day long. Sure, put on your hazards and spend ten or fifteen
minutes
>loading or un-loading - then move the car to a legal spot.
>
>The sidewalks are my freeway, my highway, and my country lane. I don't
set
>up my couch in the middle of the street, don't put the street on my
>sidewalk.
>
>And DPT should enforce on sight and patrol for this violation.
>
>
>Cheryl
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Hitesh Soneji [mailto:koolkwote at yahoo.com]
>Sent: Wednesday, April 13, 2005 8:01 PM
>To: Carfreeliving at livablecity.org
>Subject: RE: [Carfreeliving] enforcement
>
>I don't think the opinions here are all that black and white.
>What we are asking for is a little respect in terms of how
>people use their vehicles. The sidewalk is the public space
>intended for non vehicular mobility: _walking_. It is not a
>permanent parking space, nor a playground for bicyclists.
>
>I have owned a car and a motorcycle in the past, and also in
>this city. I have never thought of parking on the sidewalk. I
>think in the minds of most people, the sidewalk is for
>_walking_ and not for parking. I can not understand how
>people have come to think that sidewalk parking is
>acceptable.
>
>Having said that, I do understand the need for deliveries and
>temporary parking in driveways. I have been on my street long
>enough to know who the people are that are dropping goods off
>or running their errands while parked on the sidewalk. I have
>never called in these folks.
>
>On the flip side, there are those who park repeatedly in
>business driveways during off hours for extended periods of
>time without any concern for the sidewalk space they occupy.
>They are so close to the 'gate' that even I have to turn
>sideways to get by. This is too much. And then, I do call.
>
>If there was a friendly, more effective way to communicate my
>point and modify these people's parking behavior, I would do
>so. But thus far, no more effective method has come to my
>mind.
>
>Hitesh
>
>--- Bert Hill <echill at sfhills.org> wrote:
>
>
>>At the risk of losing my anti-car credential, I'll mention
>>two situations
>>that may call for some flexibility:
>>
>>1) My wife recently had surgery, and was confined to a
>>wheelchair. At
>>various times I had difficulty finding places to pick her
>>up and load the
>>wheelchair. I was forced to violate my own rules on double
>>parking and
>>sidewalk blocking as I went inside in to get her.
>>
>>2) We had a Ford Th!nk electric car for a short period
>>(before Ford $#*&^
>>recalled it). I didn't really think about it when I got it,
>>but soon
>>realized that I couldn't park it safely on the street while
>>it was charging
>>at night. It did fit in the driveway and didn't obstruct
>>the sidewalk at
>>all, but I was technically in violation for parking in the
>>driveway. Still,
>>it bothered me.
>>
>>I realize that 95% of sidewalk and double parking violaters
>>are
>>inconsiderate jerks, but I also suspect some may have
>>thought the same of
>>me; so now I at least hesitate for a second to consider if
>>there is a
>>justification....then call DPT.
>>
>>In the vein of a discussion on sidewalk parking, a neighbor
>>tells me that it
>>is technically illegal to park my bicycle on the sidewalk.
>>Mike, is that
>>true?
>>
>>Bert
>>
>>
>> _____
>>
>>From: Carfreeliving-bounces at livablecity.org
>>[mailto:Carfreeliving-bounces at livablecity.org] On Behalf Of
>>Mike Sallaberry
>>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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>
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--
Jason Henderson
San Francisco CA
(415)-255-8136
jhenders at sbcglobal.net
(See attached file: jhenders.vcf)
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