By Chris Camire, ccamire@lowellsun.com
A parking-enforcement officer in downtown Lowell demonstrates how, by using a handheld device, she can check whether a vehicle has paid to park in a particular space or is parked illegally. Several local communities are considering raising parking fines. SUN/Amanda-Beth Potter
Forget to feed the meter? Thinking about parking in front of a fire hydrant to save time?
The community you're ticketed in could mean a big difference in the size of your fine if you're caught.
Take, for instance, illegally parking in a handicapped zone. In Lowell, you'll get slapped with a $300 fine. In Billerica and Chelmsford, that offense will cost you $100. In Dracut, it's just $50.
Blocking a fire lane? That's a $50 ticket in Lowell, a $25 ticket in Chelmsford, a $25 ticket in Dracut and a $15 ticket in Billerica.
Why the difference? The maximum fine Massachusetts allows for illegally parking in a handicapped space, for example, is $300, while the minimum is supposed to be $100. While some communities, like
The handheld device Lowell parking-enforcement officers use to keep track of who has paid to park in the pay-by-space spots downtown. SUN/AMANDA-BETH POTTER Lowell, charge as much as they can, others do not.
Nancy Cyr, director of parking services for Municipal Management, a company that helps cities and towns manage their parking fines, says communities are often unaware of what they can legally set fines at.
"There is nobody out there informing them what the fine is supposed to be," Cyr said.
A new law went into effect last week that raised tickets to $100 for parking at bus stops. Under the previous policy, each city set its own fine. Lowell's and Chelmsford's were $20, Dracut's was $15, and Billerica's was $10.
Officials said the fine was increased because blocking a bus stop makes it hazardous for disabled people to board a bus.
Lowell last raised its parking fines about two or three years ago, according to Chuck Carney, the city's director of parking services. His department is planning to go to the City Council soon to request increases in fines for parking at an expired meter, loading zone, crosswalk and fire hydrant.
Carney said that compared to Boston, Cambridge, Springfield, Providence, R.I., and Manchester N.H., Lowell's parking fines are low in those categories. For example, Boston charges $85 for parking in a crosswalk, while Manchester charges $50. Lowell's current fine for the same offense is $25.
"We're very low," Carney said. "They're starting to get tighter on that one because it becomes a safety hazard."
Safety is the primary reason Lowell opted to charge $300 for parking in a handicapped spot. When it comes to raising fees for meter violations and other less egregious offenses, Carney said the market for parking often determines the fine.
"Downtown Lowell has had a very high demand for parking over the last two or three years," Carney said. "So we can demand that the people pay more."
Dracut is also working on a proposal to raise its parking fines. The town plans to increase most fines to $25, up from $10 and $15, said police Lt. Tom Barker. Dracut also recently compared its fines to similarly sized communities and realized its fines are low.
Raising fines not only discourages illegal parking, Municipal Management's Cyr said, but also brings in more revenue for communities.
"We find that when communities are experiencing budgetary problems, they often take the time to re-evaluate their parking fines," she said.
Lowell raises about $1.2 million annually from parking fines, mostly from parking-meter violations, Carney said.
Police in suburban towns, many of which do not have parking meters, said most of their parking-fine revenue comes from illegal handicapped parking and parking on the street during a winter parking ban.
Chelmsford Police Chief Jim Murphy said the town has raised an average of $10,000 annually over the last decade from parking fines.
"I would not say we have a severe parking problem," he said. "Occasionally we have a car blocked in Central Square, but (we) don't get many complaints."
This article appeared in the Lowell Sun on Tuesday, April 14, 2009