DRIVERS have been warned that parking fines in a major downtown area will rise at the beginning of next year.
Residents living in Knoxville, Tennessee, will see a number of citations increase from January 2025, and rise further if they fail to pay them after 10 days.
Parking fines in the downtown area of Knoxville are set to rise in 2025[/caption]
They’ll rise even further if car owners fail to pay the fine after 10 days[/caption]
According to Knox News, violations such as parking in a fire lane or near a hydrant will now increase from $25 to $35, and rise further to $44 if left unpaid within 10 days.
Furthermore, fines for all other violations, such as not feeding a meter or parking in a no-parking zone, will now be $25, rising to $34 if they are not paid within 10 days.
First announced last month, it comes as the city is working to cover the deficit it incurs on downtown garages and street parking, with raising citations being one of several suggestions made by a firm the city hired.
Next year may also see the integration of the app ParkMobile, which will allow car owners to pay for parking on their phones and refresh the meter from anywhere, in the hope that a more tech-friendly system will soften the blow of the increases.
Knoxville Chief Policy Officer Cheryl Ball said: “Parking meters don’t seem to stay online for more than just a few months because they’re breaking again.
“It is a time-consuming process as well as an expense.”
However, council members Charles Thomas and Amelia Parker voted against the increase.
Thomas, who thought the ticket increases were unfair, said: “It feels like gouging,”
“It’s counterintuitive that we’re just now starting to enforce against people who haven’t paid tickets.
“But we’re raising the penalty even though we have been enforcing it.”
Downtown business owner Logan Higgins, who once served on the Knoxville-Knox County Planning Commission, revealed his concerns over the safety of employees in alternative lots.
He added: “It is common for people to have to park on the street and run to work and even run out onto the street to (feed the meter).
“It’s a conversation that needs to continue, and I do hope it continues with more focus and consideration for those folks.”
This comes as new speed cameras are set to pop up in a major city around a prominent school zone.
Specific streets in Baltimore, Maryland, will see new tech unveiled to enhance road safety and help to modify driver behaviour.
These cameras, which will operate year-round, Monday through Friday from 6am to 8pm, will automatically send out $40 fines to those caught breaking the speed limit, although no points will be added to their driver’s license.
These citations will be generated if a vehicle is caught going 12mph or more over the limit.
And elsewhere, a man who was scammed out of $45,000 thinking he was buying his dream car has urged federal law enforcement agencies to do more to protect Americans.
Matthew Hobson, a retired firefighter from Oklahoma, had always wanted to own a classic 1968 Chevy Camaro – and even kept a picture of one on his wall when he was a kid.
Years later, when he found an example online, he immediately contacted the seller and was convinced the offer was legit.
He said: “They sent me videos, they walked around the car; it was so professionally done.”
Feeling reassured, he wired $45,000 from his pension fund to make the purchase.
But after waiting for updates on the delivery of the vehicles and hearing nothing but excuses, the suspected scammers then simply disappeared.
