How to Avoid Parking Tickets

It’s a sad little fact that a lot of the folks at the TeachStreet office are given parking tickets from time to time since the Seattle Police Station is a couple blocks away from our office. I’ve already gotten several tickets, all defintiely attributed to my forgetfulness.  I’d like to think I’m learning from my mistakes, and I’m hoping that translates into some savings in my pocket.  Here are some things that I learned along the way.

HOW TO AVOID PARKING TICKETS:

1. Take up walking as a new form of transportation
   We were given feet for a reason, so go out and use them.  If you have time, or if you’re close to your destination  just walk over rather than taking the gas guzzling car –  which definitely helps our environment. Knock two birds with one stone by ChiWalking (5Focus) to work.
2. Take up biking/cycling as a new form of transportation
   I’ve seen more and more bicyclist each morning while I drive to work, and it’s definitely a growing community both in Seattle and Portland.  There are so many resources out there to help you get started. I’d suggest you take a look at these bike maintenance or bicycling classes to help you get an idea.
3. Learn to navigate through the city and take the bus
   Both Seattle and Portland have great mass transit option with Metro Transit and TriMet.  I suggest taking advantage of these options, and it’ll help you better navigate through the city. And a recomendation from our CTO Fred, if you’re in Seattle check out BusMonster.com for your bus route needs. If you need a bit more help with navigation skills, there are some navigation classes out there too.
4. Work on your time management skills
   More likely than not, the reason one gets a ticket is because they forgot about it, which is in my case, a lot of the times. I suggest you either set an alarm on your cell phone or an old fashioned sticky note. If you’re in Seattle, take the “Time Management from Inside Out” by Seattle Free School — its free!
5. Prepare your negotiating or debating skills
   When you do get the parking ticket, you still have a chance to get out of it. You can appeal the ticket and battle it out in court, so remember to take pictures of your car and brush up on your debating or negotiating skills.

It’s definitely a work in progress for me.  Hopefully this was helpful, please comment below if you have any questions or suggestion.

If you liked this blog post, please recommend it to a colleague and/or click here to get updates via email or RSS.