SAN DIEGO — From January 1, 2024, through September 30th, parking enforcement officers in San Diego issued 76,955 tickets to parked vehicles that were not moved for designated street sweeping.
At $52.50 per citation, the tickets resulted in $4.04 million in fines.
The street sweeping violation is the highest single parking infraction this year, accounting for 15 percent of all 482,449 parking citations citywide.
Nowhere is this seen more than along Mission Boulevard in Mission Beach, where approximately 5,044 street-sweeping violations have been issued since the beginning of the year.
The vast majority of those citations occurred along Mission Boulevard's 3000 block.
Other hot spots for street sweeping violations behind Mission Boulevard include Voltaire Street, Broadway Avenue, and numerous spots in North Park including Kansas Street, Oregon Street, Wightman Street, and Arizona Street.
A city spokesperson said street sweeping violations are the top most-ticketed parking infraction throughout all major cities across California.
The spokesperson told CBS 8 that the city posts signs along streets with updated street cleaning times and ensures the signs are legible and free from obstructions.
In addition, the city spokesperson adds, "The Stormwater Department posts all street sweeping routes and schedules online. We also manage a dedicated street sweeping hotline to provide information and address any inquiries related to street sweeping.
As to what the city is doing to prevent a high frequency of tickets in Mission Beach, the spokesperson said the Stormwater Department also places flyers on vehicles to inform drivers of the importance of street sweeping to help prevent ocean pollution and improve water quality.
Lars Johansson is visiting from Chicago and says parking fees are avoidable.
"It's one of those things. If it's posted and you can read it, that's the very definition of a scofflaw, just ignoring things that are posted. I check the signs all the time. I know where I can sleep and where I can't. I read the signs."
Johansson adds it's an expensive lesson he's had to learn.
"I got towed once in the City of Chicago, and it clearly said there was no parking or a tow zone. I was new to Chicago at the time, and I said no. They towed me. It took about 15 minutes, and I never did that again."
Alena lives nearby and says she's been cited more than once for a street-sweeping parking violation.
"I just simply forgot. I got it the day before, avoided the Wednesday side, and forgot about Thursday. Late at night, when you're getting home, it's dark and sometimes hard to see the signs too. You kind of forget a little bit."