In June of 2012, Mr. Littlefield signed into law a parking provision that if you so happen to park your car backwards in any parking spot in our great city of Chattanooga you will be fined $36 regardless if you have time still on the meter when the agent spots your car.
No excuse says the Chattanooga Parking Authority for not knowing the law. Therefore I suggest that all Hamilton County residents make themselves aware, so not to endure a $36 fine just as I did.
Oh well, I guess that’s the way the Chattanooga Parking Authority stays in business by fining everything they see.
I did send the Chattanooga Parking Authority a note in their appeal section stating that since I still had time on the meter, maybe they could have been nice enough to write me a warning so I would know not to do this again. However, I guess I should have had my handy Chattanooga Parking Authority regulation book on hand telling me this was wrong.
I sure hope they don’t do this to out of town visitors as that may put a bad taste in the visitors' mouth and more than likely they would not revisit our fine city while helping to fill the tax coffers.
Michael Mansfield
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Mr. Mansfield,
I too have received the ticket for parking in the wrong direction. I was irate about it. After I did a lot of research I came to two conclusions.
1. This is a law basically everywhere in the country with a few exceptions and is considered dangerous because when you are pulling out you are pulling into oncoming traffic. Seems petty but a law is a law. I have copied from the city code that refers to this.
(a) It shall be unlawful to stand or park any vehicle, except for a motorcycle or motor scooter, in a roadway other than parallel with the edge of the roadway headed in the direction of lawful traffic movement and with the curbside wheels of the vehicle within 12 inches of the curb or edge of the roadway; provided, however, this prohibition shall not apply to the parking of any vehicle in a designated diagonal parking zone or space.
2. While this really irritates me the Parking Authority doesn’t set the fines or the rates for them they just enforce. This is handled by City Council. Contact your local city councilman.
I wish the Parking Authority would worry more about important things like delivery vehicles and loading zones, I battle issues with this daily trying to make deliveries.
Mark Stephens
Chattanooga