Arlington Makes It Easier to Fight Parking Tickets

The Arlington County Board over the weekend voted to adopt a change to the Motor Vehicles and Traffic Code, making it easier for drivers to “fight city hall” if they want to appeal a parking ticket.

The move will allow the County Manager to streamline the process for appealing certain parking citations, according to a news release from the County.

The Board voted unanimously Saturday to amend the code to expand the County Manager’s authority to designate who shall be authorized to abrogate parking citations.

“This change to the ordinance just makes sense,” said Arlington County Board Chair Mary Hynes. “Once the Manager puts the process in place, hundreds of people each year will be able to save time and avoid the inconvenience of appearing in court to resolve citations for minor parking violations.”

How it works now

Currently, if a car is cited for expired safety inspections, registration or personal property decals, the owner must pay a fine or make an appearance in the General District Court, according to the county.

The owner has to request a court date by submitting an affidavit within 30 days of issuance of the citation. The owner will receive a court date within 10 days of filing the affidavit, and court dates are often scheduled six to eight months after the citation was issued.

Under the existing ordinance, if the vehicle is stopped by a uniformed officer for any of the same violations, the driver is given a court date and has the option of appearing in the General District Court, generally within two months.

Before their court date, the driver has the option of demonstrating compliance by appearing in person at the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, and the charge may be dismissed – with the owner not having to pay a fine or appear in court.

Parking citations in 2014: 156,012

In 2014, the Arlington County Police Department issued 156,012 parking citations. Of those, 19,593 were for compliance violations. Of those compliance violation citations, 856 vehicle owners requested a court date by submitting an affidavit.

The Board’s action will allow the County Manager to establish a more efficient and consistent method for handling compliance violations, whether they are issued when a vehicle is stopped by a uniformed police officer, or issued to a parked car.

To read the staff report on this item, visit the County website. Scroll down to Item #14 on the Agenda for the March 14, 2015 Regular County Board Meeting.