Here’s what’s wrong with this picture, the car to the left has been plowed under since the first snowstorm on January 27th and has not moved an inch. The car to the right was dug out by its owners who did the best they could under the circumstances. Today, the car to the right got a ticket for “angle parking.” The car to the left is still there.
City Councilor Josh Zakim says Boston’s Department of Public Works did a survey late last week and found 122 cars on Marlborough Street alone which have not been moved or touched since the first storm. It’s not illegal to leave cars on the street after the street cleaning season, but something has to change. Many of my friends outside of the city were shocked to learn that a “parking ban” only applies to a few street “thoroughfares” as they are called. Beacon, Commonwealth, Dartmouth and a few others are the only ones affected by a parking ban. That is why the rest of the city is a nightmare.
We need to take a page out of Montreal’s book and establish some rules going forward. We could do alternate side of the street 48 hours one side - 48 hours the next, then allow everyone back. Or, give vouchers for garage parking within 25 miles of the city . Whatever the vouchers cost could not compare to the cost and disruption those that have chosen to leave their cars in personal igloos have cost everyone who has tried to maneuver Boston’s streets in the last 6 weeks. As for ticketing the “angle parkers,” it’s an outrage.
