Note, Leaving Notes Has a Noted Lack of Non-Towing Success

[protege]

I'm sorry, but if you block someone's driveway, and that person has your car towed, you pretty much had it coming to you.

Several of my neighbors have been boxed in like that. Whenever there's an event at the elementary school around the corner, the idiots come. They park wherever they damn well feel like it--on both sides of the street (illegal, because it's narrow to begin with), close enough to driveways that we can't get out...or even on the damn sidewalk! We've complained to the cops and the borough. They won't do anything, since unless someone gets into an accident, they don't care.

So rather than deal with bureaucrats, some of them have taken matters into their own hands. Block our driveways (or even park in our driveways without permission), and we *will* get you towed. Oh, and we won't call Triple-A for a flatbed either. Instead, we'll call "Jim-Bob's Towing" with the crusty 1972 Chevy pickup to remove your vehicle. He'll drag it out...and hopefully it'll make it back to his lot in one piece

[Mytical]

I lived on a street that was walking distance to the county fair. Now mind you my town was so small that if you blinked you would miss it, but the fair was huge for some reason (We had people coming from California (I was in Ohio) JUST for the fair ). So our who road was used as an imprompto parking lot after the fairgrounds parking, a huge field next to the fair ground used for parking, and the road the fairground was on was filled up. (I told you, for a small town, this fair was HUGE).

Since we had a fair sized drive way (we lived on a hill), people would just park there. Without asking us. If I had a dollar for each car we had towed...I'd probably be slightly wealthy by now. Finally we decided we couldn't beat them, so we made money on it. Charged $5 per parking space. For 6 six days a year we would rake in about $50-$60..a day. (Once you pulled out, if you wanted back it cost you another $5).

[wolfie]

We've complained to the cops and the borough. They won't do anything, since unless someone gets into an accident, they don't care.

So rather than deal with bureaucrats, some of them have taken matters into their own hands. Block our driveways (or even park in our driveways without permission), and we *will* get you towed. Oh, and we won't call Triple-A for a flatbed either. Instead, we'll call "Jim-Bob's Towing" with the crusty 1972 Chevy pickup to remove your vehicle. He'll drag it out...and hopefully it'll make it back to his lot in one piece

Too bad you and your neighbours don't know someone involved with a "chop shop". Offending cars go away, "chop shop" operators don't have to worry about witnesses (entire neighbourhood of Sgt. Schultz clones), everyone wins - except the asshats, but who cares about them?

[protege]

I should mention that CS does not condone vandalism...even if it's warranted.

I mean, in my neighborhood, we've tried to play nice. We've tried to keep idiots out of our driveways, yards, spots (some people have little parking "pads" along the street) using legal means. We're simply frustrated and tired of it. Most of us just get the offending idiots towed away. I'm sure though, that some of my neighbors sometimes resort to more "interesting" ways of getting their point across

[PepperElf]

So rather than deal with bureaucrats, some of them have taken matters into their own hands. Block our driveways (or even park in our driveways without permission), and we *will* get you towed. Oh, and we won't call Triple-A for a flatbed either. Instead, we'll call "Jim-Bob's Towing" with the crusty 1972 Chevy pickup to remove your vehicle. He'll drag it out...and hopefully it'll make it back to his lot in one piece

how pissy have the car owners gotten when they've come back to find that their cars have been legally towed?

[protege]

I'm sure they were pissed...but not much they can do about it

[EricKei]

People in Mardi Gras parade areas often have had to resort to putting up "plastic fencing" (the flexible orange grid-stuff) across their driveways to keep people from parking there during parades. More often: they put the fencing over their lawns and flower gardens to prevent revelers from standing there for hours during a parade and destroying them, or setting up ladders w/wooden boxes fastened to the top to put their kids in.

Note -- Setting up ladders too close to the street is illegal, but NEVER enforced (there are stories every year about kids getting hurt or even killed because of it); the ladder must be as far away from the street as the ladder's total height (a 7 foot ladder has to have its leading edge 7 feet from the street/curb). For parking, though: those laws DO get enforced when a parade is coming through, swiftly and harshly. One car parked along a route can prevent the entire parade from going through, so they have no choice but to tow those people's cars or make them move.

[Jester]

For parking, though: those laws DO get enforced when a parade is coming through, swiftly and harshly. One car parked along a route can prevent the entire parade from going through, so they have no choice but to tow those people's cars or make them move.

Anyone else picture the Drew Brees Sportscenter commercial?

"I can't get through the gate. The gate is narrow!"

"Alright, hey, what do you want me to do? Just back up, I'm stuck!"

[Marmalady]

Since we had a fair sized drive way (we lived on a hill), people would just park there. Without asking us.

There was a news item over here, a year or two back now, where someone came home from work one day and found a strange car parked in their driveway.... The owner didn't come back for it that night, or the next.

Turned out it was the car of someone who had gone on a fortnight's holiday abroad, and rather than pay airport parking charges had decided they'd just use a local driveway instead.

[pzychobitch]

I'm with Jester on this.

As am I. That ranks up there with taking up 2-3 parking spots in a compact car.

[Kagato]

As am I. That ranks up there with taking up 2-3 parking spots in a compact car.

How is that even POSSIBLE... The whole point of compact cars is that they DON'T take up space - it just boggles the mind x_x

[NoRedCards]

How is that even POSSIBLE... The whole point of compact cars is that they DON'T take up space - it just boggles the mind x_x

I see this all the time at the local Target - they have a new car, anysize really, and their solution to avoid having people park next to them is to put one wheel in each of 4 spaces......

Wish I still owned my old truck....I could help them fix their parking problems....

[EricKei]

How is that even POSSIBLE... The whole point of compact cars is that they DON'T take up space - it just boggles the mind x_x

Simple. Park diagonally -- such that you take up portions of two spots in the half of the parking lanes you SHOULD be in, and also, park "half way" between the lanes so that you take up two on that side, as well. 4 spots eaten up by one car.

Or, to put it another way: picture the lines in a big parking lot as HH ... Park such that your car crosses the center point where the horizontal lines meet.

[wolfie]

Couple years ago, I stopped at a gas station to buy a paper. There were 2 parking spaces left, side-by-side. Car immediately before me parked straddling the line.

Took a bit of doing, but I was able to park entirely in what they'd left of one of the spaces, with about 6 inches between my passenger side and their driver's side (most of that was to avoid contact with the mirrors). As I was getting out of my car, they came back and demanded that I move so they could get into their car. I said "Sorry, did I park over the line?", took a quick look, and continued "Nope, I'm completely within one space", then went into the C-store. At that point, another customer standing outside laughed.

[DiRF]

Yeah... I, many times, have intentionally parked my passenger side as close as possible to a car that's parked over the line.

Yes, it's a dick move on my part, but [5-year old] they started it! [/5-year old] :P