Does anybody have more info on the rules and regulations regarding having your car towed when parked in between 2 driveways in San Francisco?

I did find this website about private lot but nothing about off the street parking...

 

Might want to ask the questiion in a San fransisco specific area not the R56 Board.

 

I know, but I parked my R56 in bewteen these driveways

 

My daughter lives in SF. The got a ticket because she said her car was like 3" into a driveway. They also clean the streets and the cars have to be moved elsewhere that night or you get another ticket, so you better have someone move it (where?) if you leave town. So far she's had a couple of them. She has not had her car towed (yet). From what I gather SF sucks for parking on the street.

 

Parking in SF totally sucks ***! But I was parked on my street and as resident, I have a resident permit. The sad thing about all this is that my "neighboor" called the DPT to get the car towed without having the decency to leave a note on the car.

My MCS was not into the driveway... but since only a MC can fit in that spot, I guess the owner of that driveway was just pissed that someone finally took that tiny spot making it a bit more difficult for him to get into his driveway.

Just for your info, mini-red zones are legal ONLY if they have the SFPD or DPT stencil on... There are lots of fakes out there, so if there's no stencil, ignore the red and go by the curb cut.

 

Parking between driveways is not 'off the street' per se, as far as I know it is the same limit as the other space on the block, so if there is a two hour limit or street cleaning or whatnot the rules apply. If you are at all encroaching on a person's driveway you can get a ticket and/or towed.n Check the CA DPT site for info on rules & regulations and ways to contest it - http://www.sfgov.org/site/frame.asp?.../www.sfmta.com

I always take the time to see if I actually fit in a steet space or protrude into the driveway and thus have not had issues with it; I've also been on the other side of things and having to manuever around blockers (which is often more difficult then you might think) or be trapped in/out is wretched so I respect people's access and then don't have to worry about the DPT in that regard. One of the reason's I probably wouldn't switch to an R56 is that the little added length can be the difference between really fitting cleanly or encroaching in those tiny slots between driveways (and it is the reason the Smart will rule in cities, it will open up a world of slot spaces that it actually fits in).

Street cleaning signs are something to keep your eye out for as that is a sure ticket or tow, but that's the same anywhere they have street cleaning in my experience, I can't blame them except wonder who twisted who's arm to get so much darn street cleaning in some areas that never seem to need it...

 

I understand exactly what you mean and I also always check if I "really" fit or not as I respect people's access.

Like I said, I am a resident and I often park on this spot. Until yesterday, no problem.

It's just sad the person didn't put a note on the windshield first...

 

Find out the officer's name as well as the tow company driver and register a complaint as well as contest since if you are not actually blocking they shouldn't tow. When my husband was living in a popular area in SF people would block the driveway all the time - the DPT would ticket but only tow when the person was seriously into the driveway, so there is no way they should have moved your car.

It is really too bad about your neighbor, perhaps you can find a way to talk to them about it and get on good terms - good luck (sometimes though, there is no help, I know..)

 

Definitely check on this info yourself, but this is what I know about SF parking. I know this sadly because I lived in a place where people constantly blocked my driveway.

1. The owner of the driveway has the option to call DPT and have the car ticketed or ticketed and towed.
2. The car needs to be on the cut side of the curb. So even if you think the person has room to get out, they can ticket/tow you if you are on the cut part of the curb.
3. If the owner wishes to have the vehicle towed, a DPT officer must go to the residence, and the owner has to be present to prove that the car is preventing them from getting out.

These were the rules like 3 years ago, but I always make sure and not park on the cut part of the curb. This is your best policy to avoid driveway tickets. Also, if there is a house with a no parking sign on the garage door and red paint on the curb, you can pretty much bet they are not messing around with people parking in their driveway. These people are not to be messed with... hehe.

 

Thanks for confirming that... I def. was not blocking his driveway and wasn't parked on the cut part of the curb.

I am gonna sue them in small claims court.

Thanks for your input btw eVal ;-)

 

I'm not surprised. The locals here are notorious for being overprotective of their garage access. Alot of the smaller spots have red paint marking the edges of the driveway. If you overhang by even two inches to either side, they can legally have you ticketed. The full red curbs are usually just some jacka** out there with a can of Krylon filling in between these offical markings to prevent small cars from even thinking of parking there. I'm with beatloafer, don't mess with these psychos, they'll tow you in a hearbeat.

If you want to fight the tow fees, go out there with a tape measure and measure the spot between the curb tapers. Submit that length with the length of your car, showing how you didn't overhang. Also include a picture of the "self-painted" curb without the DPT markings. I don't think you'll get anywhere with DPT, but it's worth a shot because it's technically illegal for residents to paint their own curbs. Oh yeah, don't do this by mail, all you'll get is a form letter saying the tow was valid. Do the court date and fight it in person. Good Luck!

 

That is my understanding as well. Somebody has to complain and specifically request a tow, and the DPT officer must meet with the person who made the complaint.

It's a sad situation. A neighbor on my street is pretty mean about having cars towed that I think should get by with just a ticket. I think it will be a tough case to win if it was an official full red zone rather than just the edges of the driveways. You could try to argue that your car fits easily between the driveways and the space should not be marked completely red, but I'd guess that rezoning a curb is a long difficult process. All I could suggest is that when you park in a risky space, leave a note with phone# on your dash saying that you will move it if they call.

 

In retrospect I realize that I was not thinking about the title of the thread and the mention of the 'red zone' when I posted before, I was responding to the content quoted above about in between driveways and the off the street remark - now realizing that you might have been in a red zone I am not sure if you can contest anything. If you were indeed overlapping anything painted red and marked by the DPT as a no-no zone then it is likely pretty cut and dry, as stated on the DMV site under 'Illegal Parking': Never park or leave your vehicle:...At a red curb. Of course you can check with them to be sure it is a real DPT painted curb and contest it anyway, but you may want to find out more about it and weigh out the benefit of doing so if it is (fwiw we once got a ticket in SoCal for literally being 2 inches in a red zone bordering a metered space for a few minutes at most and there was no contesting it).

I actually had a terrible experience with the whole note thing so I don't know that I'd actually try that again, sometimes you gotta leave dealing with things like that to the professionals I'm afraid...

 

The red zone has always been for loading and unloading of passengers. There is no stopping in the white zone.

 

I think the wink means you know it is the other way around? :

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/hdbk/pgs29thru31.htm

I just want to be sure I'm reading you right

 

Don't you tell ME which zone is for loading and which zone is for unloading!

 

I love the "Airplane" reference!! Good one