TO: AREA NEWS MEDIA
FROM: BRATTLEBORO PARKING ENFORCEMENT
RE: WINTER PARKING BAN
DATE: 11/15/23
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The Brattleboro Parking Department would like to advise everyone that the winter parking ban will go into effect, starting Wednesday, November 15, 2023. Overnight parking is
forbidden on all streets in the town of Brattleboro. Vehicles parked for longer than one (1) hour between 11:00pm and 07:00am may be ticketed and towed at the owner’s expense.
THIS BAN IS IN EFFECT EVEN IF THERE IS NO SNOW ON TOWN STREETS.
Brattleboro has a flashing light system and a signboard program in place to assist citizens in knowing when plowing will be done. A flashing AMBER light designates the need to remove snow from off street lots. A flashing PURPLE light designates the need to remove snow from the streets. Snow removal starts at 11:00pm. During snow storms vehicles must be parked under cover in the Transportation Center. Also, DPW will place sign boards around town with notification of pending snow removals.
If parking is not available in the Transportation Center, overflow parking is allowed in the Preston lot. Vehicles must be out of the Preston lot by 8:00am to allow for plowing of that
lot.
Vehicles may be towed at any time if they are hampering snow plowing or snow removal.
Again, the winter parking ban will go into effect Wednesday, November 15, 2023. This ban will remain in effect until April 15th, 2024.
The Best We Can Do
The Winter Hassle For Renters Who Share Parking goes into effect this Wednesday.
If you rent and share parking space with your neighbors, you may have to do elaborate car moving at all hours of the day or night depending on the needs of others while you wait until April for that space on the street to be available overnight again. EVEN IF THERE IS NO SNOW. Hey, we might even fine you!
If it is warm and clear, avoid that available space in the road that would make life easier for multiple renters for the next five months of the year.
It is impossible for us to come up with a system that goes into effect only if and when there is snow. We’d have to have a way to predict the weather in advance. (You complain as if the earth is getting warmer and we’re having less snow than ever.)
Much easier for us to keep this ancient, pre-Climate Change ordinance. : )
BEST WE COULD DO
That is an excellent critique and challenge to town officials to do better. Has the idea of using a weather-related parking ban instead of a ban dictated solely by the calendar, been proposed to the town manager and Selectboard?
Ban
For years! Circa 2007 I got a ticket for parking on Washington Street (nowhere near downtown) over night when there was zero snow on the ground. When I contested the ticket they said I should have parked in the garage… seriously? I might as well have parked at Walmart and walked.
Brattleboro’s winter parking ban is the classic example of “well that’s the way we’ve always done it.”
We can have credit card meters now but somehow can’t make our winter parking ban actually dependent on the weather?! Don’t get me started!
(Rubbing hands and petting cat)
Do tell…. : )
…
At our place on Cedar Street, three apartments shared a single driveway. Without the ban, two could be in the driveway and one could be in the street. No problem.
With the ban, all three had to pile into the driveway. We could fit, but it meant that someone always had to go interrupt someone else if they wanted to get out past the other two cars.
When it really did snow, half the driveway was then lost due to snow falling from the roof. That meant two cars would be blocking the third, and everyone had to get up and go out if #3 wanted to go out.