Over $40,000 in parking fines issued at Richmond Night Market
The City of Richmond has collected more than $40,000 from parking fines issued to people who couldn’t resist the temptation of parking illegally near the Richmond Night Market.
Richmond parking officers issued 1,240 tickets from April to October because some attendees chose to park in unauthorized areas, such as disabled spots without a permit or too close to fire hydrants.
sen yang/Shutterstock (Richmond Night Market)
The city’s communications strategist, Clay Adams, says there was plenty of free parking and over 1,500 parking stalls for attendees and 200 for employees.
“They’re standing there and ignoring the signs that say no stopping,” says Adams.
He says 90% of the fines were for parking in no-stopping or no-parking zones. Eleven people were fined for parking in disabled spots without a permit, and around 25 cars were parked too close to fire hydrants.
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“For example, stopping or parking a vehicle where prohibited [i.e., in a no-stopping zone] would result in a ticket of $45-$90, depending on when it is paid. Most infringements fall into this penalty range,” says Adams.
However, Adams doesn’t blame the Richmond Night Market for the parking fiasco and says the city plans to do something about it.
“This is not a fault of the night market. This is just our fault, and we certainly had no issues with traffic around the night, and it’s not because of the night market.”
The Richmond Night Market has a traffic management plan as part of their contract with the city, including off-street parking and road closures during the event.
The City of Richmond advises people to take transit or park legally and walk a few blocks to the market next year to avoid fines.
“The Bridgeport station is right there and is within walking distance; we would know that means that people we know go to another transit station and take the final part of the journey.”
He added that opting for public transportation or ride-sharing services like Uber next year would be the most effective method to steer clear of the surge in ticket prices.
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