[NYCFarmboy]

Originally posted by Superchicken:
I don't think this guy is reading this thread any more

He must be under 6'5"

[dencamp]

Originally posted by RAILhead:
We don't put up with that crap in Texas.

If you leave your car in the same spot on the roadside/curb (not in the driveway, of course) for more than 3 days, you get fined out the yang. If it's still there after 5 or 7 days, it gets impounded. Sweetness. =)

And now I get to use this two days in a row:




Maury

To me that seems as if that ol evil guvment IS treading on your right to leave your car where you damn well please. I trust myself to choose where to park not my government.

/zombie reagan

[grayware]

Why don't you build a fence around his truck with the material in the back of it?

[amsalpemkcus]

here is a devilous suggestion. i see two trucks there use ur imagination.

[JC Denton]

When I first clicked on this thread, I thought it was going to involve something about taking a parking spot after it was shoveled out and saved Chicago-style with lawn furniture. But in the picture, we see a near-empty Southern California street (yeah, parking seems to be at a real premium out there) and a truck with a flat, because someone's sensitive eyes couldn't bear the thought of a foreign car occupying "their" precious space.

If you think they're casing your house or your neighbors' homes, I guess that might be a different story.

But otherwise, give me a break.

[Gankdawg]

Originally posted by mitchell_pgh:
Looks like he parked further then 1' away from the curb... have him towed.

I saw that too. I thought the law (I guess it depends on where you live) was 18 inches. But whatever. That truck is sticking out too far, IMHO.

Solution? C4.

[Doc Juansinn]

Originally posted by Spheric Harlot:
So if I don't have a driveway, and curb parking is allowed, and I don't need my car for three days, I get fined?

I'm assuming the law there (location of original poster) is the same as it is here; parking one's car on a public street for longer than 72 hours = (according to local ordinances) storage of said vehicle. It is most certainly unlawful to store private property on public property and this is why the cars can be towed and/or the owners fined.

That being said, I do find it interesting how possesive people are of the street in front of their house when it comes to someone parking there, but how nobody gives a damn if there are leaves, litter, portable basketball hoops, or people dealing drugs in front. (You know, the old �I don't want to get involved� bit.)

[Teronzhul]

The location of the truck in question appears that it would give any driver pulling out of that driveway a horrific blind area when pulling into traffic. If I had to deal with that for 3 days I'd be pretty mad myself.

[phantomdragonz]

I have a solution!!!!!


get a jack... rent/buy from an auto parts store a pair of "tire dollies" basically they are curved, have 4 wheels and fit under the tire... you will need 4... jack up truck, put on dollies... and move to other side of the street or to neighbors house...


easy, and it does not hurt anything, plus the guy will just think he is crazy when he finds hid truck on the other side of the road...


or you could just call the cops and ask if the truck is stolen because it has been sitting outside your house for the past 3 days or so (to lazy to look at post date)


Zach

[Spheric Harlot]

Originally posted by Dr. Wahnsinn:
I'm assuming the law there (location of original poster) is the same as it is here; parking one's car on a public street for longer than 72 hours = (according to local ordinances) storage of said vehicle. It is most certainly unlawful to store private property on public property and this is why the cars can be towed and/or the owners fined.

That being said, I do find it interesting how possesive people are of the street in front of their house when it comes to someone parking there, but how nobody gives a damn if there are leaves, litter, portable basketball hoops, or people dealing drugs in front. (You know, the old �I don't want to get involved� bit.)

I dunno, maybe it's cuz I live in the city, but there is SO MUCH PARKING SPACE available in that picture that I *really* don't get what the hell he's complaining about. what about parking to the right (in front of) the truck? Or would that block the spectacular view of a chain-link fence?

Over here, you are not allowed to use the publich street for private storage, either. However, since cars with valid insurance/license plates are road-worthy, they stay can stay in the road. Only if license plates are removed will the car get towed.

-s*

[RAILhead]

Originally posted by dencamp:
To me that seems as if that ol evil guvment IS treading on your right to leave your car where you damn well please. I trust myself to choose where to park not my government.

/zombie reagan

I don't know why some of you have such a hard time comprehending this ordinance. Repeat it with me: You CAN'T park in the street. You CAN'T park in the street. You CAN'T park in the street. Parking in the street is obstruction of traffic. Parking in the street is obstruction of traffic. Parking in the street is obstruction of traffic.



Maury

[badidea]

Originally posted by RAILhead:
You CAN'T park in the street. You CAN'T park in the street. You CAN'T park in the street. Parking in the street is obstruction of traffic. Parking in the street is obstruction of traffic. Parking in the street is obstruction of traffic.

I think you forgot 'middle of the' between 'the' and 'street'!

[Spheric Harlot]

Originally posted by badidea:
I think you forgot 'middle of the' between 'the' and 'street'!

The way it works here is: You may park along the curb of EVERY STREET unless expressly forbidden. Expressly forbidden is: parking within three meters of intersections and where blocking driveways/emergency access paths, on certain types of roads (such as highways) or where signs disallow it.

I find it difficult to see where parking along the curb anywhere in Mr Kino's posted image would obstruct traffic in any way, shape, or form. Block both curbs entirely, and you can still get a semi or a firetruck through the road at full speed easily.

That does not qualify as "obstructing traffic" where I come from.

[effgee]

Originally posted by RAILhead:
... Parking in the street (in TX, and/or parts thereof) is obstruction of traffic.

fixed™

That should settle it, no?

[SimeyTheLimey]

Originally posted by Spheric Harlot:
At any rate, pointing fingers at other instances of bureaucratic idiocy, as you are so wont to do, doesn't really explain why cops are tied up writing down every single car on the curb of every single street, and then sitting around for hours comparing lists to see who's been there for more than three days. Or is this law only arbitrarily enforced?

-s*

I have no idea, it's a local ordinance in a state other than the one I live in. Ask a Texan.

The point is what local laws make sense depends very much on where you are, and what the context is. mitchell_pgh mentioned the no-feeding-the-parking meter ruke in D.C. That can be extremely annoying, but the reason is parking in the District is very tight and the city decided they didn't want people hogging parking spaces all day by the expedient of feeding the meter every 2 hours. Other cities wouldn't do that, because circumstances vary.

Similarly, there are local rules in D.C. about no parking during rush hour, there are zones in which parking is restricted to local residents, and in some places, parking is restricted on the day in which trash is picked up. They are all dictated by a need related to congestion.

I imagine that the Texas rule is related to the fact that abandoned cars is a pretty notorious problem in parts of the South. But that is just a guess. In any case, if the locals thought the rule as crazy, they would repeal the ordinance. That's called local government.

[Spheric Harlot]

Originally posted by SimeyTheLimey:
I imagine that the Texas rule is related to the fact that abandoned cars is a pretty notorious problem in parts of the South.

Don't you have to return or mark as invalid license plates on a car that you no longer pay taxes and insurance for?

Over here, a car with valid license plates (i.e. insured and taxed) is not an "abandoned" vehicle.

[SimeyTheLimey]

Originally posted by Spheric Harlot:
Don't you have to return or mark as invalid license plates on a car that you no longer pay taxes and insurance for?

Over here, a car with valid license plates (i.e. insured and taxed) is not an "abandoned" vehicle.

Abandoned cars are frequently stolen vehicles. Or simply ones that people dump rather than dispose of properly when they wear out. They are an eyesore, and a nuisance. An abandoned car probably wouldn't have valid tags. Just as in Germany, it isn't obvious from a distance that the tags are expired. You'd have to look closely at the sticker.

Ticketing cars for being parked too long (or other violations) is one of the ways the state monitors compliance with the titling and registration requirements. Drivers who are cavalier about one rule are quite likely to be cavalier about others.

You might recall, a few months ago, I had a thread about a ticket I received from DC. The ticket was for expired tags, only I had turned those tags in to DC when I left the city over a year before. The tags were stolen in what was probably an inside job and they were being driven by someone other than me. The city spotted the car with its expired tags when it was parked - probably because it was parked for too long (there was no other violation on the ticket). Unfortunately, they sent me the ticket because I was the last registered owner of the tags, but I did get it cleared.

The bottom line is you can debate whether 3 days is a sensible cut off, but it isn't per se an irrational idea. If it were, people wouldn't support the ordinance and they would repeal it.

[Spheric Harlot]

Originally posted by SimeyTheLimey:
Abandoned cars are frequently stolen vehicles. Or simply ones that people dump rather than dispose of properly when they wear out. They are an eyesore, and a nuisance. An abandoned car probably wouldn't have valid tags. Just as in Germany, it isn't obvious from a distance that the tags are expired. You'd have to look closely at the sticker.

...which is part of the cops' job when they write up a ticket.

[SimeyTheLimey]

Originally posted by Spheric Harlot:
...which is part of the cops' job when they write up a ticket.

Spheric: it's their law. It doesn't matter whether you like it or not, and it doesn't affect you. Stop being such a busybody. The whole world doesn't have to do things the way they are done in Germany.

[RAILhead]

Originally posted by effgee:
fixed™

That should settle it, no?

Cripes, that's what I've been saying all along, but I guess some people are just too slow to get it. That's why I used the key words "Texas" and "county" and "ordinance," etc. Sheesh, people.

And unless the lanes of residential streets in your area are REALLY wide, a car parked on the curb can extend well over halfway into the lane, thus, obstructing traffic. I don't want to have to constantly drive around someone's car, swerving into the other lane, because some idiot doesn't park his car in his driveway -- that's what driveways are for, and we all have them (driveways) in MY CITY. Thus, if you keep your car hoarding the lane rather than using the driveway for 3 days we take action. You get warned, then you get towed.

Sweetness, unobstructed streets, and it helps make our city streets look nicer because there aren't cars lined-up down the residential roads.

Maury

[RAILhead]

Originally posted by SimeyTheLimey:
I imagine that the Texas rule is related to the fact that abandoned cars is a pretty notorious problem in parts of the South. But that is just a guess. In any case, if the locals thought the rule as crazy, they would repeal the ordinance. That's called local government.

Abandoned cars aren't the issue -- those are always towed. We have the ordinance to keep the streets open and free of cars littering the lanes. And remember: every house that's built in our city HAS to have a driveway by our laws, so every house in our city has a driveway. This is to work in conjunction with the no cars in the street ordinance because there's no reason for a car to sit on the curb, taking up lane space, for SEVERAL DAYS STRAIGHT (emphasis added for the people that don't get it) because every house has a driveway. Simple as that.

Our city is painfully clean and we take pride in it, so we do what we feel will keep it that way -- and we all feel that having cars taking-up lane space, causing drivers to swerve into on-coming lanes and potentially causing an accident is something we take curb (no pun intended) with our ordinances. And ya know what? It works.

Maury

[RAILhead]

Originally posted by Spheric Harlot:
Don't you have to return or mark as invalid license plates on a car that you no longer pay taxes and insurance for?

Over here, a car with valid license plates (i.e. insured and taxed) is not an "abandoned" vehicle.

Abandoned: To give up by leaving or ceasing to operate or inhabit. We follow that definition and if you don't operate the vehicle by moving it within the allotted time, you get fined then towed.

Maury

[Spheric Harlot]

Originally posted by RAILhead:
Abandoned: To give up by leaving or ceasing to operate or inhabit. We follow that definition and if you don't operate the vehicle by moving it within the allotted time, you get fined then towed.

If you're okay with that, feel free.

Me, I pay taxes for the right to use public streets.

[Spheric Harlot]

Originally posted by SimeyTheLimey:
Spheric: it's their law. It doesn't matter whether you like it or not, and it doesn't affect you. Stop being such a busybody. The whole world doesn't have to do things the way they are done in Germany.

[RAILhead]

Originally posted by Spheric Harlot:
If you're okay with that, feel free.

Me, I pay taxes for the right to use public streets.

Heh, you sure are thick headed, eh? I guess Germans don't know the difference between parking lots and streets, huh?

Anyway, this thread is dead now. It was fun while it lasted.

MAury

[Mastrap]

Got to say, I am surprised too.
What happens to your car when you go on holiday?
And, do you pay road tax in the US?

In the UK you're allowed to park your car pretty much indefinitely as long as it is insured and taxed. Although the council will slap a removal note on it if it's getting vandalised or looks abandoned.

Happened to a friend of mine who woke up one morning and his car was gone.


Edit: Didn't see the 'every house has a driveway' part. Still, what if you live in an apartment? Allocated parking?

[jcadam]

Originally posted by RAILhead:
Heh, you sure are thick headed, eh? I guess Germans don't know the difference between parking lots and streets, huh?

Anyway, this thread is dead now. It was fun while it lasted.

MAury

I am currently living in Germany, and I can tell you that, indeed, Germans DO NOT know the difference between parking lots and streets.

1) When driving in the right most lane in downtown Heidelberg, a German will pull slightly to the right and park right in front of you!!! Without signaling!! And then they stare at you when you lean on your horn and let them know they're #1

2) If driving down a TWO-WAY residential street and you happen to come across someone coming from the other direction, one of you will inevitably have to back up until you find an empty spot along the curb to pull over and let the other pass. I remember one day, traffic from a major thoroughfare was detoured onto one of these streets. Me, with a great host of vehicles on my tail was coming from one direction. Another guy, with a multitude of cars trailing him, was coming from the other. We stopped, stared at each other and shrugged our soldiers. Several of us had to get out of our cars to devise a plan to resolve the situation.

3) On highways, Germans will pull over to take a leak. In full public view. Not really relevant but I thought I'd share

[RAILhead]

Originally posted by Mastrap:
Got to say, I am surprised too.
What happens to your car when you go on holiday?
And, do you pay road tax in the US?

In the UK you're allowed to park your car pretty much indefinitely as long as it is insured and taxed. Although the council will slap a removal note on it if it's getting vandalised or looks abandoned.

Happened to a friend of mine who woke up one morning and his car was gone.


Edit: Didn't see the 'every house has a driveway' part. Still, what if you live in an apartment? Allocated parking?

Yes, every house in city limits -- thus under the ordinance -- has a driveway. As for apartments, they all have their own parking area/parking lot as they are private property.

Maury

[badidea]

Can we end this thread by agreeing that in the US you have driveways almost everywhere while in Germany we have driveways almost nowhere. Streets look totally different and everyone of us is not used to the way it works on either side of the ocean!

-> we have different laws! No need to get in a fight about that (even Spheric nowhere mentioned that the German way would be better) - it's just weird for our ears!

[SimeyTheLimey]

Originally posted by Mastrap:
And, do you pay road tax in the US?

No. At least, not as a separate tax as in the UK. Highways come out of a mixture of county level local taxes (e.g. property tax), state taxes (e.g. income tax, sales taxes) and federal highway funds (from income tax, etc.). You do pay a registration fee for your tags, but it is nominal.

Some states also impose an annual property tax on cars. Those are very unpopular. Others just have a sales tax levied on new sales of cars. Each state is different, but I am not aware of any state that dedicates the funds specifically for highways. There really wouldn't be any point as it is usually the number 2 item on the budget after schools.

Edit: Didn't see the 'every house has a driveway' part. Still, what if you live in an apartment? Allocated parking?

Don't forget that these sorts of issues are decided at the county and municipal level. The rules vary widely, basically driven by local geography and circumstances.

For example, in DC, which is as dense as many European cities and where street parking is common, residents can get a residential street parking permit. It lets them park during the day. Non-residents' cars will be ticketed and towed if they park for more than two hours during the day.* On the other hand, my suburban side street in Virginia has no restrictions that I am aware of. But it doesn't really need them because it is very low density and we all have driveways.

Every suburban apartment I have seen has off-street parking. They probably are required to build one as part of their zoning permit when they are constucted. The apartment gives you a little sticker and you can park there as long as you like because it is part of your rent.


* This was a real hassle for me when I was dating!

[effgee]

Originally posted by badidea:
Can we end this thread by agreeing that in the US you have driveways almost everywhere while in Germany we have driveways almost nowhere. ...

Not too many driveways in NYC, for example. How about this: In general, rural areas are more likely to have lots and lots of driveways in comparison to urban areas - regardless of geography.

[RAILhead]

Originally posted by effgee:


Not too many driveways in NYC, for example. How about this: In general, rural areas are more likely to have lots and lots of driveways in comparison to urban areas - regardless of geography.

Not really -- South Texas is about as far from rural as you can get. Have you ever been to Houston? Anyway, this thread is fini.

Maury

[effgee]

Originally posted by RAILhead:
Not really -- South Texas is about as far from rural as you can get. Have you ever been to Houston? Anyway, this thread is fini.

The term "in general" ring a bell with you? At all? You are taking his way too seriously, dude.

Remember:

• "in general" =! "where you live"

• "rural" =! "hick/bad"

[InterfaceGuy]

Originally posted by RAILhead:
Cripes, that's what I've been saying all along, but I guess some people are just too slow to get it. That's why I used the key words "Texas" and "county" and "ordinance," etc. Sheesh, people.

And unless the lanes of residential streets in your area are REALLY wide, a car parked on the curb can extend well over halfway into the lane, thus, obstructing traffic. I don't want to have to constantly drive around someone's car, swerving into the other lane, because some idiot doesn't park his car in his driveway -- that's what driveways are for, and we all have them (driveways) in MY CITY. Thus, if you keep your car hoarding the lane rather than using the driveway for 3 days we take action. You get warned, then you get towed.

Sweetness, unobstructed streets, and it helps make our city streets look nicer because there aren't cars lined-up down the residential roads.

Maury

I don't believe we have any laws like that in Tennessee, at least in the county I live. There is a guy that lives a few houses down from me that is a truck driver and leaves his big diesel truck parked on the curb. This blocks half of the road and its at a curve which makes a blind spot going around him. I've met other drivers head on trying to go around at the same time as me. Its quite annoying.

[Nebrie]

There are always people parked in front of my house every night and the police never care about it, which is surprising given that there is a big yellow fire hydrant smack in the middle of that space.