Yahoo Finance 7 Cities With the Most Expensive Parking Tickets
Any heavy-footed American driver driving across the country will tell you firsthand that highway speeding violations differ greatly from state to state. Speeding is the most common traffic ticket in the United States. However, parking tickets are more common, so much so that many municipalities nationwide rely heavily on ticket revenue and court fees to pay for government services.
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Parking tickets refer to citations issued by police officers or other government traffic officials to inactive motor vehicles for violations of local laws. Most parking tickets are issued in downtown areas and other commercial corridors. While many consider them a nuisance, they can be quite burdensome, especially for lower-income Americans in major metropolitan areas.
Interestingly, the New York City Council introduced a bill last year requiring people who are richer to pay more for violations like parking tickets and double parking. “It scales it according to a person’s ability to pay, which we don’t have a current model for,” said Antonya Jeffrey, state director of the Fines and Fees Justice Center. “A $75 fine can mean going without really basic needs for one person and could just be a drop in the bucket for another.”
In the future, some cities should start adopting programs that can account for the ability to pay and limit the amounts of outstanding tickets based on either income or participation in government programs.
Cities with higher costs of living tend to have more expensive parking tickets. Here are seven cities that dish out the country’s most expensive parking violation fines.
San Francisco
San Fransisco has the most expensive parking violations in the U.S. According to the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency’s (SFMTA’s) fees and fines list, some of the most extreme fines include $400 for blocking wheelchair access, $866 for misuse of a disabled parking placard/license and $1,000 for obstructing of traffic without a permit. The majority of parking fines are above $100.
The city is making a ton of revenue on tickets, but as SFMTA Chief Spokesperson Erica Kato said, “The purpose of parking citations are to discourage behaviors and actions that interfere with the goals of the SFMTA, such as reducing congestion, increasing pedestrian and bicyclist safety, and cleaning streets.
“Because San Francisco is a Transit-First city, and to encourage non-vehicle modes, the SFMTA set its vehicle fines higher than other cities that depend on cars as the primary form of transportation,” Kato added.
New York City
Although there are steeper fines for intercity bus violations and overnight tractor-trailer parking, parking violation fines in New York City range from $180 (plus a $30 N.Y. State Criminal Justice surcharge) for parking in a zone reserved for people with disabilities (off-street) where parking is not allowed by sign, street marking or traffic control device. The price lowers to $50 for speeding in a designated school zone or getting photographed going through a red light at an intersection. The majority of fines in NYC are for either $65 or $115 and there are steeper fines for some offenses in Manhattan (96th St. and below) than for all other areas.
Chicago
Chicago is another city known for large fines. The city is home to the highest parking meter fees in the U.S., and its parking violation fines are among the highest as well. In the city, you can get a $250 fine for parking or standing in a bicycle lane, parking in a disabled parking zone or double parking in the Central Business District downtown. You can receive a $250 ticket for not having or having an improper muffler and excessive running of a diesel-powered vehicle.
San Diego
More serious parking violations in San Diego Country will cost you $342.50 for parking in a disabled parking space, access area or loading area and $262.50 for parking in a bus zone (minor infraction fines are $37.50 or $47.50). In the city, the most common violations are for disobeying street sweeping signs, not displaying current registration, expired meters, parking in a “red zone,” and not “cramping your wheels” (turning them toward the curb on a hill), according to KPBS. However, hefty fines are reserved for various misuse of disabled parking placards ($826.50).
Los Angeles
California has some of the most expensive traffic citations in the country, with California drivers paying billions of dollars in fines and fees every year. The usual suspects are expensive: parking in a disabled spot or bus stop will cost you $363 and $293, respectively, but traffic officers give out the most tickets to drivers parked in street sweeping zones, per Los Angeles Times. Also, in cities with large college campuses, like UCLA, separate enforcement officers have jurisdiction over their school parking regulations, and those fines vary from the city property too.
Portland, OR
According to officials, the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) issued around half the amount of parking tickets in 2022 as it did in years before the pandemic and “there are no plans to restore the city’s parking ticket numbers to pre-pandemic levels,” per KOIN. However, it’s not due to the city giving residents a break; it’s because of budget cuts and fewer parking enforcement employees. Regardless, Portland’s most expensive parking offenses have fines of $440 for invalid use of a disabled permit, $215 for blocking a handicapped ramp and $285 for abandoning your vehicle (a growing issue in Portland in recent years).
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Washington, D.C.
Washington is especially tough on parking violators. Because its urbanized area is small, there are big fines for oversized, trailer, boat, and large vehicle violations. However, you’ll only have to pay $20 for small-time offenses like parking too close to a driveway or in front of a barricade. You’ll be unpleasantly surprised at the fines given for unauthorized parking in a loading zone ($100), parking on private/public property without consent ($250), unauthorized use of a space reserved for individuals with disabilities ($500), and excessive idling (up to $500). Failure to comply with the metro’s tinted windows regulations (front side windows must allow more than 70% of light in; back side and rear windows must allow more than 50%) will cost you $1,000 on the first offense and $5,000 on the second.
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