Apparently, the city of Denver is making a great deal of money off of handing out parking tickets throughout the city. While in 2006, the city made a little over $15 million in revenue, in 2011 it had made close to $28 million – a 76 percent increase in just 5 years.
Along with handing out more tickets (an increase of 11 percent since 2006), the fines for various parking violations have gone up as well. Fines for minor parking violations can range from $20 to $150.
Though this may not seem as significant as the normal traffic violation, the fines can be very expensive. One woman received 12 tickets for a single violation, and with various late fees and collection charges she was required to pay out $2,240. She complained that she didn’t even have any knowledge concerning four of the tickets.
A great many of the tickets handed out are for violations that many drivers probably did not know were even on the books. For those parking vehicles more than 18 inches from the curb, they are now expected to pay close to three times as much in fines as were assessed just a few years ago. And drivers can be fined for staying in a parking spot for too long – even if they’ve put more money into the parking meter.
Though parking laws on the book may be necessary to make certain parking is available for everyone and that cars are not in the way, the violations that drivers are alleged to have committed probably pose no safety threat to anyone. Asking prosecutors to at least reduce charges or provide an explanation to a judge for why the violation took place would seem only fair. And it may be wise to retain an attorney when the costs of traffic violations are adding up to the thousands of dollars.
Source: CBS Denver, “Denver Sees Significant Increase in Parking Ticket Revenue,” Oct. 25, 2012
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