Meter Maids Jump the Gun in Fort Greene
It sounds like the traffic cops didn’t get the memo from DOT that the new alternate side of the street parking rules in Fort Greene and Clinton Hill are not in force until Monday. According to this tip we got, they were just a little too anxious to start making everyone’s lives miserable again: I…
It sounds like the traffic cops didn’t get the memo from DOT that the new alternate side of the street parking rules in Fort Greene and Clinton Hill are not in force until Monday. According to this tip we got, they were just a little too anxious to start making everyone’s lives miserable again:
I came home to Willoughby Street today to find cars all the way up the block with tickets (including mine). It seems a Traffic Agent Blackett decided to ticket everyone even though alternate side goes back into effect next week. I’d be interested to hear if other streets had this same problem.
How ’bout it: Anyone else get hit with premature ticketulation?
not talking extremes here and asking for warm fuzziness, just occasional logic. clearly when cars are illegally parked and unattended, ticket it, especially in bus stops, traffic, or those busy/jammed ‘slolem streets’. but if the car is in an empty quiet area, and you see someone trying to pull a wheelchair in/out, or help an invalid, or unload 2 kids and a stroller, or someone locked out of their car, youre not doing any favors to anyone by ticketing them.
im done on this topic. agree to disagree.
how do they enforce tickets against bike riders? simple. these have to be written by peace officers(cops or specially deputized traffic agents)…no id? no problem we will just go down to the station house, finger print you and hold you until we establish your id. oh you have id….
as for J walkers.. its a $2 ticket no wonder they don’t write them….
I agree with MM and bxgrl. They are hired to write tickets for cars parked in violation of the law. If they make exceptions, they are violating the terms of their employment. If you get a ticket for which you feel you were victimized, appeal it and take your chances with a college-educated, better-paid hearing officer who is paid to make these judgments.
Of course there are bad apples- show me what job doesn’t have them? But what makes you think they are allowed or required to listen to everyone’s story? Because everyone has a story. They aren’t allowed to make that call and too many people project onto them. How nice and sweet would you be if every day you had to get verbally and sometimes physically abused by some overwrought car owner whose threatening to rip your head off. They have to be tough- do you remember why they uniforms were changed from brown to blue? Because so many of them were getting abused and beaten up NYPD thought if they looked more like real cops, the public would show more respect.
Sorry- but they aren’t hired to be fuzzy and warm and they can’t afford to be.
It is nice when the traffic agents accept your “legitimate reason” for double parking, standing in a no standing zone, etc, but they are strict liability offense – if you are doing it you are liable for a ticket. While I would be the last person to throw stones (glass hosues and all), the cumulative effect of all those double parkers, etc, is a serious degregation of traffic flow. My boyfriend, who is from Atlanta, is just amazed by the slolem (sp?) course that is Clinton Avenue near Myrtle.
As far as refusing to give id to a cop when being cited for a traffic violation, even if on foot or bike, I don’t recommend it. Chances are you will emerge from criminal court 36 hours later. Really not worth it.
there are too many stories of people who had to park very briefly for very legitimate reasons, in low-risk uncrowded places and getting ticketed: someone dropping an invalid wife off at the dialysis clinic to get treatment (no cars in the area, no traffic, the warden didnt care or listen), mother running to drop of prescription meds for her mother (not a busy area/cars/traffic either), me waiting for AAA to come open my car after keys locked in in a residential area with my car not blocking/bothering anyone. it goes on and on, thus their “no respect from anyone”, because too many of them are likely hired on their ability to be unfeeling robots who’ll ignore people’s please, and go about their way bringing in revenue.
that being said, i have defended them in a past post, agreeing its a sh.tty job dealing with hostile people. but there are more than just a few bad apples.
And I completely agree, MM. It’s a lot easier to be the screaming civilian, than inside that uniform. They’re told what to do and how to do it and they get all the flack. It’s not a fun job but people gotta work.
rob, they do give people tickets for being stupid. Actually, they don’t have to give them, people come in and ask for them themselves. It’s called “The Lottery.”
It’s a sh*tty job with no respect from anyone, and unrealistic demands from their own agency for standards of success. But it’s an honest day’s work and puts a roof over people’s heads, and someone’s got to do it. I’d refrain from the “brainless vulture” name calling. As for the lack of respect from the “real” police – they seem to spend an awful lot of time doing the same thing, and at least have a badge and the authority of their office to face down angry drivers. The mostly female, mostly minority, mostly immigrant traffic enforcement agents don’t have much recourse other than to walk away. I wonder how many people here would put up with that in order to keep a job.
Just sayin.