I think you should let people on bikes take a pic of the license plate and upload it to the DOT. Then you issue them a citation and give a cut to the reporting person. Like a bike bounty system

this would be problematic photoshop.

maybe a better way to go would be to just put some of those city-watch cameras (or whatever they're called) along the bike lanes and let the parking enforcement people "patrol" 10s of miles of bike lanes in seconds. give those remote operators a small bonus for every ticket. they'll watch like a hawk. they can do double-duty as parking enforcement and crime prevention.

though, I suppose there could be some significant fine for people who are proven to have committed fraud with the photo uploads. that may deter false reports. you would just need parking enforcement to occasionally double-check on the reported cars to make sure people are not committing fraud

That is being trialed in NYC, we're watching that program closely.

I've said this before but...

I will continue reporting FOR FREE if someone actually shows up and writes a ticket or tows the vehicle.

Almost every single day at lunchtime, I report 1-3 commercial vehicles parked in the Potomac bike lane at O'Donnell Square.

The fact that this is an ongoing problem tells me that enforcement is nowhere near the level where it needs to be.

Reporting the violations is not the issue.

The real issue is getting someone to respond to the violation fast enough to actually do something about it.

> this would be problematic photoshop... you would just need parking enforcement to occasionally double-check on the reported cars to make sure people are not committing fraud

They should be checking all of them. The driver is being accused of a crime, so both the reporter and the person issuing the citation should be subject to some "penalty of perjury" boilerplate, implying that they have at least looked at the thing. And you don't get paid unless the city knows your real identity. So all things considered I think this would be a pretty unattractive form of fraud/revenge.

That's why issuing a citation from the photo you took while they were still parked in the bike lane would help.

And then people will challenge the tickets saying it was photoshopped, so you'll have to show up in court and testify, but you will be like "eh, do I really want to go down to court and go through all that just to get paid $25? Nahhh."

And then every asshole in town will realize they can just challenge the tickets in court and the witness is unlikely to show up and deal with the hassle, resulting in the fines being dismissed, which will defeat the whole purpose.

The idea of paying bounties for photo evidence is an idea that sounds really great in theory, but will likely not produce meaningful results.

At worst, it'll be just another means for blaming victims and dismissing complaints - "Stop complaining that there's cars parked in the bike lanes! Be part of the solution! Take pictures and we'll pay you!"*

*After you waste a day of your life in court that will probably cost you more money in lost wages than the bounty pays.

What about delivery drivers? Law enforcement going to lunch?

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It wastes the driver's time to appeal even if the witness stays home. This raises the cost of parking in the bike lane significantly from its current level of zero.

Please. Pleeeeeeeeeaaaase give me the power.

What about them? Don't park where parking isn't allowed. You may think "oh I'm only here a few minutes" but every other jerk parking in the bike lane has the same thought. All those "just a minute" stops add up to continual obstruction.

Imagine you wanted to drive your car, but a delivery truck has double parked and boxed you in. Okay, no big deal its only for a minute right? You can be patient for that long. Only, as soon as that delivery truck pulls away, another one comes and blocks you. And then another. All day long. You're stuck, forever, but no single person inconvenienced you for more than a minute.

And its worth mentioning that a lot of these bike lanes are designed to be wide enough for emergency vehicles to use in an emergency. If you've parked in the bike lane you've not only inconvenienced bikers and peds, you've potentially obstructed an emergency vehicle who was relying on that bike lane to respond to an emergency.

Absolutely agree, we are saying the same thing. There has been no enforcement on them.

The photoshop issue can be mitigated by requiring a video instead of a photo. In NYC, the city offers bounties to people who submit videos of commercial vehicles idling. I'd love to see Baltimore do the same.

Since it would technically be used in court, wouldnt that amount to false testimony / statements? I also think this is far less of a problem then you’re thinking, considering people can already photograph and report.

I feel like every time I see this posted, it loses sight of the fact that people can already take photos and report such.

I think you misunderstand the motive of the above poster - I don’t think it was negative whataboutism but “let’s also do x”

Personally I just say oh well and bike around the car without really caring. But if someone was going to give me 5 dollars every time I reported a car, I would stop and to it. Human psychology haha

the photograph and report isn't what is being used as evidence to give them a ticket currently, just as the reasoning for the city worker to show up. the city employee then documents it and tickets.

if a city employee has to physically be there to check every report, then there is no point in having a citizen reporting mechanism. if the city employee isn't there, then the image can be faked. if you had a city employee show up to SOME, but not all, citizen reports, then it could deter people from committing fraud because there is a real risk of getting caught.

Delivery drivers are not allowed to park in bike lanes. All businesses have designated delivery areas. Report them via the 311 app.

Law enforcement is not allowed to park in bike lanes unless their lights are flashing. Report them via the 311 app.

This is all true.

This post is about the enforcement. 😊

Thank you for reporting them! Those reports help us focus our enforcement, which is what this post is about.

Yeah you're right. I totally interpreted it the other way

I didn't realize you meant check them in person. I was suggesting that they (remotely) check the image metadata, compare the photo to the make/model of the registered vehicle, look at the witness's report history, etc. Basic sanity checks before issuing the citation. Checking in person rules out ticketing anyone who parks in the bike lane for less than, say, half an hour.

As for photoshop, the bottom line is that I can already fabricate evidence and sue random strangers if I want to. The fact that this involves a bike lane doesn't fundamentally change anything in that regard. It's high risk and low reward, and unless I missed a fun new crime trend, is not a big problem in practice.

yes, a basic sanity check should happen with every citation.

involving the city and issuing a citation is fundamentally different from a person taking another person to civil court. the city is going to have to be liable for the claims of random people, so it should have a bit more scrutiny. but like I said, it does not need to be very many spot-checks in person in order to be a significant deterrent, AND help the city be less open to lawsuits in the future for not doing due diligence. .

Hope you're also enforcing parking restrictions in bus stops too!

Absolutely!

What about BPD driving and parking in them? I see it all the time, even the ones sectioned off by a concrete median like the one between Light/Pratt St and Harborplace. Fucking ridiculous

If their lights are on, they're likely to respond to an emergency. If they do not, you can report them using the 311 app or via the BPD Complaint Form.