Weekend Car 'Booting' Observed Downtown...

**Zacha341** · June-05-11, 09:04 PM

I was visiting a friend downtown this weekend and observed a marked Detroit's finest parking enforcement van with two individuals tending to a parked car - one putting a large red sticker on the driver side window and another person applying a metal wheel-lock 'boot' on State St.

This was a 'very bad' day to the owner of that vehicle when they came out to drive away! ....

....

I wasn't aware that the parking bureau worked weekends! But apparently they are. It's my understanding that if you have five or more parking tickets unpaid your car comes into 'boot' status and even if you pay off the fifth ticket you remain in this status until you have three or less unpaid tickets.

Once your car is 'booted' it is un-drivable, and it is then towed to a city impound lot, and you have to pay storage, the boot and tow fee in addition to whatever the amount of the tickets are. You cannot pick up your car unless you come to the pound with a valid license and proof of insurance.

If you don't have proof of insurance you have to have it towed away from the impound lot. No wonder there are so many cars available for auction when the city auctions off cars abandoned to the impound lots.

This car seemed to be parked along with others whos cars where not 'booted'. Has anyone else observed this weekend activity...?

**BillyBBrew** · June-05-11, 10:07 PM

Saw a car booted on VanDyke in West Village on Saturday. The odd thing about it was a person with a commercial looking video camera and another person by the car. Parking Wars maybe?

**Richard** · June-05-11, 11:29 PM

Originally Posted by BillyBBrew

Saw a car booted on VanDyke in West Village on Saturday. The odd thing about it was a person with a commercial looking video camera and another person by the car. Parking Wars maybe?

I wonder if they have Philly tecno where if you owe tickets it pops up and you get booted.
Between Parking Wars and Hardcore Pawn it kinda makes Detroit seem like a not so nice place to live. But I guess it is entertainment.

**CLAUDE G** · June-06-11, 03:10 AM

Speaking of Parking Wars, I was downtown yesterday infront of the Penobscot building, and they had parking enforcement out there along with a film crew and a tow truck.

It almost looked like an eposode of Parking wars being filmed.

I will say this, if they ever decide to boot my car, I'll cut it off with a torch and leave the boot sitting in the street for them to find when they come by later to check on it.

**Zacha341** · June-06-11, 04:04 AM

Wouldn't that melt the tire? ...

...

Originally Posted by CLAUDE G

Speaking of Parking Wars, I was downtown yesterday infront of the Penobscot building, and they had parking enforcement out there along with a film crew and a tow truck.

It almost looked like an eposode of Parking wars being filmed.

I will say this, if they ever decide to boot my car, I'll cut it off with a torch and leave the boot sitting in the street for them to find when they come by later to check on it.

**Zacha341** · June-06-11, 04:26 AM

Yeah something like that. When the meter readers roll by and your at an expired meter or illegally parked, they run your plate and if you're over the 'quota' of unpaid tickets the system flags 'boot status' and they relay a call to the boot van and presto you're toast. I think I may have one unpaid parking ticket. I will call asap to verify and pay the thing. I don't need anything to interfere with my ability to drive and cost me more money.... nothing.

Originally Posted by Richard

I wonder if they have Philly tecno where if you owe tickets it pops up and you get booted.
Between Parking Wars and Hardcore Pawn it kinda makes Detroit seem like a not so nice place to live. But I guess it is entertainment.

**canuck** · June-06-11, 05:39 AM

Parking meters in Montreal are electronic and when a car is sitting in an overdue space, the meter relays the space number to roving agents in the area. This gives them a timely edge over the parking user/sucker out there. Also, you cannot take over remaining time on someone else's meter; it counts back to zero once the first one has left. It can easily set you back 3 bucks for a 60 minute limit downtown, less in the other boroughs. So the moral is, the city rakes in a lot of dough...

**MidTownMs** · June-06-11, 06:26 AM

Originally Posted by Zacha341

Yeah something like that. When the meter readers roll by and your at an expired meter or illegally parked, they run your plate and if you're over the 'quota' of unpaid tickets the system flags 'boot status' and they relay a call to the boot van and presto you're toast. I think I may have one unpaid parking ticket. I will call asap to verify and pay the thing. I don't need anything to interfere with my ability to drive and cost me more money.... nothing.

You don't have to call about parking tickets. Go here to see if you have unpaid tickets: https://step1.caledoncard.com/cgi-bin/detroit.cgi

**Zacha341** · June-06-11, 08:24 AM

Thank you! I was dreading the rude matter-of-fact "can I hellllppp youuu?" person answering the phone or worse the maze of never ending computer-voice prompts that ultimately end in a 'click'...

Originally Posted by MidTownMs

You don't have to call about parking tickets. Go here to see if you have unpaid tickets: https://step1.caledoncard.com/cgi-bin/detroit.cgi

**gumby** · June-06-11, 08:46 AM

Originally Posted by CLAUDE G

I will say this, if they ever decide to boot my car, I'll cut it off with a torch and leave the boot sitting in the street for them to find when they come by later to check on it.

Or you could just pay your tickets and park legally from here on out. I know, novel concept, uh?

**Zacha341** · June-06-11, 09:12 AM

LOL! I've tried faithfully to not get tickets, but it happens. If you pay them within 10 days you get a $10 discount, but oh-well, sometimes you forget! Oye! The life of driving in the city!

Originally Posted by gumby

Or you could just pay your tickets and park legally from here on out. I know, novel concept, uh?

**Hypestyles** · June-06-11, 09:45 AM

^^^ is there really a discount, if you pay in person? my guess is the online pay probably doesn't work like that..

**Zacha341** · June-06-11, 10:12 AM

Even if you 'snail' mail the ticket in the envelop they provide, so long as you do within the 10 day window [[allow for processing) they take off the $10.00 and they cash the check fast... I've done that and beat the deadline. This department is probably one of the more efficient of city of Detroit workings.

Originally Posted by Hypestyles

^^^ is there really a discount, if you pay in person? my guess is the online pay probably doesn't work like that..

**softailrider** · June-06-11, 07:51 PM

Originally Posted by gumby

Or you could just pay your tickets and park legally from here on out. I know, novel concept, uh?

And you might just get a ticket anyway. novel concept, uh?

**gumby** · June-07-11, 06:45 AM

Originally Posted by softailrider

And you might just get a ticket anyway. novel concept, uh?

If you read the friggen signs and follow them you will have no problems.

**Zacha341** · June-07-11, 10:30 AM

True. Just don't have a meeting go over time or misjudge your distance time to walk back to your meter and 'feed' it more coins. Yep, you'll do just fine. Better still avoid downtown and other meter heavy areas... Nah - that's not a good idea.........

Originally Posted by gumby

If you read the friggen signs and follow them you will have no problems.

**gumby** · June-07-11, 11:03 AM

Originally Posted by Zacha341

True. Just don't have a meeting go over time or misjudge your distance time to walk back to your meter and 'feed' it more coins. Yep, you'll do just fine. Better still avoid downtown and other meter heavy areas... Nah - that's not a good idea.........

Well then park in one of the umpteen million surface lots or parking garages downtown. I just hate it when people complain about easily avoided things. I've only ever gotten one parking ticket for an expired meter in Detroit. You know what I did? I paid the ticket and moved on with my life because it was my fault for not putting an extra quarter in the meter and it expired.

**drjeff** · June-07-11, 12:57 PM

Parking in Detroit is cheaper than any other major city I've ever visited. Pay the $5 or less at any number of lots or garages and you don't have to deal with meters.

**fryar** · June-07-11, 11:31 PM

I recall receiving only one parking ticket at a time, back before Cadillac Square [[the median, not the building) got "upscaled". Is that still going on?

In other words, surely the meter maids came by a few additional times - that car's been there all weekend, after all - but there's only one ticket. Must be something about not issuing those revenue tickets I've been reading about when lurking on that coolest ruins of Detroit site.

My experience with Detroit parking tickets was not something I would describe as particularly abrasive. Most weekends, if I parked on Bates, between Cadillac Square Apartments and Cadillac Tower [[?), I didn't get ticketed at all.

Sometimes, once the city got around to putting up the no parking sign the predecessor of which had clearly been dismounted by some fellow city-dwelling driver sometime prior to my arrival in Detroit, I got one. But never more than one.

Honestly, I can't relate at all, guys. As exemplified by your meter maids, you folks are a friendly bunch. Nice people, in Detroit.

You try to get a municipal parking space, different story. But them's the breaks.

**Zacha341** · June-08-11, 01:56 AM

Yeah, I hear all that.... have used lots etc. this and that. I don't have unpaid parking tickets. I just know it happens once in a life time [[getting a ticket that is) for some who've otherwise tried valiantly not to get one. Dig?

Originally Posted by gumby

Well then park in one of the umpteen million surface lots or parking garages downtown. I just hate it when people complain about easily avoided things. I've only ever gotten one parking ticket for an expired meter in Detroit. You know what I did? I paid the ticket and moved on with my life because it was my fault for not putting an extra quarter in the meter and it expired.

**Zacha341** · June-08-11, 02:01 AM

Yeah when I deal with downtown now I use this structured lot near the Penobscot building that is decent. Or one of the flat lots near the Fox and 'people move' it down into the heart of downtown. Many of the meters only give you an hour so they are fairly USELESS to try to get anything done. You'll get a ticket for sure. These short-run meter expire fast to ensure you get a ticket. It's rare to find a two-hour meter. So don't bother.

Originally Posted by drjeff

Parking in Detroit is cheaper than any other major city I've ever visited. Pay the $5 or less at any number of lots or garages and you don't have to deal with meters.

**CLAUDE G** · June-08-11, 02:56 AM

As far as Meters in Detroit, I'll pay the parking Meters in Detroit only because they got someone trolling around waiting to ticket you the second it expires.

As far as parking Meters in the Suburbs, I refuse to put any money in any meter since I never get caught because im only in the stores for a few minutes. Even if they do ticket me, its only $5 and it works out better to save the money you didn't put in the meter and play cat and mouse with the meter maids.

Now I was just recently in Denver, and parked in a privatly owned parking lot. I was there for 4 days and paid the $20 each day to park in the lot for a total of $80. I forgot what I was doing one day, and missed the cuttoff to renew the parking space for another day and got a $65 Ticket.

Im looking at the ticket ready to call the City of Denver and pay it,and its not even a real ticket. It was an actual bill from the company who owned the lot to make it look like a real parking ticket.

I ended up just ignoring that ticket, as I want to see how they intend to enforce that one

But not to sound like a smart A$$, I generally pay for my parking and if I get a ticket I do pay it in a timly fashon

**Zacha341** · June-08-11, 03:17 AM

Hah! You should see the meter maids 'trolling' the Gratiot and Chene area waiting for the things to click off "expired" in front of Ziedmans pawn shop. Folks going in their to 'hock' stuff only to come out to a parking ticket! Talk about one step forward and two steps backwards..... LOL! Thankfully I do little business or commerce in or around downtown Detroit.