Getting our car back: a story in pictures
A tow truck like this picked up my car yesterday. This one is leaving the impound lot to bring back more.
Yesterday our car was towed from an alley behind Commercial Drive. I had parked there at least 50 times in the past 15 years when a free street spot wasn’t available.
When we found the empty parking spot and confirmed the car was taken by Busters Towing, my 10-year-old son was furious. He said it wasn’t fair because there aren’t any “No Parking” signs in the alley.
He yelled rude things about the government, while I stayed calm and sat at a table at Waves (drinking a coffee from Continental). I looked on my iPhone for info on the exact law I’d broken.
“In Vancouver all lanes (except in the area bounded by Burrard Street, Coal Harbour, Stanley Park and English Bay) that abut commercial property (e.g. stores, hotels, restaurants, parking lots) are classified as commercial. The only vehicles allowed to stop in these laneways are properly licensed commercial vehicles,” reads the City of Vancouver article Top 10 Ways to Avoid Getting a Parking Ticket.
Okay. Fair enough. It would be bad theoretically if two delivery vehicles were trying to pass and were blocked by people’s cars. But no explanation was good enough for Toby, who was still furious.
“I could have bought a new skateboard with that money!” he said.
Indeed the amount would cover the Hydro bill or buy a lot of good groceries. It was $94 to get the car out of the impound lot and I still have to pay another $50 for the parking violation fine.
Ouch.
We followed a long green hallway to this window. I gave them my Visa card and they gave me receipt and a parking ticket for another $50.
This token gets you and your car out of the impound lot. A sign on the wall says you have to pay another $94 if you lose the token.
We walk through the lot to Spot 94, where our car waits. We feel like it was kidnapped and feel quite sorry for it.
Toby puts in the token and releases us from car prison.
"Customer Exit" reads the writing on the door that you have to drive really, really close to before it opens and lets you out. I don't feel like "customer" is quite the right word.
I love the pic of you guys hugging your car and giving it lots of love. Poor baby taken away by the strange men and locked up all alone.
(And thanks for that “10 ways” link… I think I might have broken the “6 metres from the inside edge of the intersecting sidewalk” rule a couple of times and got away with it)
It is a good link…and we checked out front of our place, Susan, a long time ago…that first tree next to the road on Lakewood, back from the intersecting sidewalk is 6 meters back. (That is why we always park with our nose parallel to the tree). I DID not know about that rule that got you towed though..so good info!!
Loved this one! At 50 times in 15 years, that’s 2.88 per alley parking on the pay later plan. Hug your car from me, too, and play her some good tunes!
Thanks Dana! I like that “pay later” rationale – takes a bit of the sting out of paying.
Thanks Jon. Yes it’s like we bailed out our poor car after getting it in trouble. It was the one in jail, even though I am the law-breaker who parked in the wrong spot! hahaha