Last month, OPD Traffic Control made a pass through LHA looking for parking violations. The officer provided some pointers to avoid getting a parking ticket. The parking violations looked for are:

1. Cars parked over 2/3 of the sidewalk – he acknowledged that cars do need to park partially on the sidewalk on our narrow streets (such as Bates / Holman / Underhills) to allow emergency vehicles to pass through, but cars should not cover the sidewalk or block pedestrians / wheelchairs.
2. Cars parked facing the opposite direction of traffic – our narrow streets are 2-way streets and although it’s difficult to make a 3-point turn, cars need to park on the right side of the street, with the flow of traffic.
3. Cars parked in driveways, but extend over the sidewalk – although this sounds like it would be considered a partial blocking of the sidewalk, the officer was firm about this rule.

OPD Traffic Control officers cover very broad sections of Oakland, so although they visit infrequently, we can expect regular visits. Stay ticket free!