![]() ![]() Robinson pointed out that the city’s $66 residential parking permit may be dramatically more affordable than the hundreds of dollars that unpaid tickets rack up, especially for those who have no other choice than to park on city streets while at work or home. In Berkeley, expanded eligibility for monthly payment plans, reduced late fees and waived first-time tow offenses were some of the biggest changes approved - without discussion or pushback - during the Jan. The work to lessen the inequitable impacts of these kinds of fines took root years ago in San Francisco, but similar efforts have since trickled across the country - stretching from Seattle to Chicago to Durham, North Carolina. “These reforms represent a step toward a more compassionate transportation system in Berkeley.”īerkeley parking enforcement officer Elisia McKeever issues a parking ticket to a vehicle with no parking permit in a commercial loading zone on Bancroft Way in Berkeley, Calif., on Friday, Feb. “I believe deeply that city government should not be in the business of pushing people further into debt and poverty,” Robinson said in a statement. And if people end up having to give up their vehicles as a result, they often also lose access to jobs, education, medical care and other vital resources.Ĭouncilmember Rigel Robinson, who authored the report, said that while parking regulations do help maintain safe streets, he’s seen firsthand how punitive, outdated regulations have disproportionately harmed low-income constituents in his district on the city’s south side near UC Berkeley. These fees - particularly when they start compounding and spiraling out of control when not paid on time - can drive people further into poverty. ![]() Last year, more than 137,000 tickets collected upwards of $4.7 million. In 2021, the Berkeley Police Department issued 119,075 citations and generated more than $3.5 million in parking fees for the general fund, according to city data. Historically, the number of violations doled out each year outnumbers the city’s population of 117,145. ![]()
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