The parking problem in the city of Chicago is a concern for many people. I recently moved to the city. Since I have moved, I received four tickets in one month totaling over $250.
One ticket was for a city sticker. Since I just moved here in May, I did not realize I needed a sticker until I received the ticket. I paid the ticket, even though I felt it was unfair to issue a ticket without first a warning. On top of that, I paid another $80 for the city sticker itself.
One week later I received another ticket for not moving my car when the street was being cleaned. Unfortunately, I did not notice any signs indicating my car had to be moved so I received a $30 ticket for that one. Admittedly, this was my fault for not paying closer attention.
The third ticket was at a meter that I had put two quarters in for two hours. I came back in 2 hours and 5 minutes and had a $50 ticket waiting on my window.
I got the fourth ticket when I met a friend downtown for dinner. I parked at a meter that stated the times were between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. Since it was past 6 p.m., I felt I was safe not feeding the meter. When I returned, I discovered another $50 ticket for parking in a restricted residential area, not because I had not put money in the meter. Why have a meter in a restricted parking area where a sticker is required?
Now, I don’t drive a Lexus and I don’t have a lot of expendable income. I think the ticketing process in Chicago is getting to be ridiculous. Is the city really hurting that badly for money? Don’t the police have enough things to keep them busy? Granted, some of the tickets were my fault, but four tickets in one month are a bit much. At this rate, I won’t be able to afford to live here.
I am sharing this with you as a very frustrated consumer who moved to the city because of what it had to offer. I didn’t realize I was going to be nickel-and-dimed to death when I moved here. Are there any other people out there who feel the same way?
