Your Next Parking Ticket May Be From Metro

WASHINGTON - The next parking ticket you receive could be coming from Metro.

The transit agency wants to start cracking down on drivers who illegally park in front of bus stops.

"Our [MetroBus] drivers pull up to a bus zone, and there are cars parked in it," Metro General Manager John Catoe says. "As a result, our buses cannot pull into the bus stop."

Metro is trying to become authorized to issue parking tickets at any bus zone in D.C., Maryland and Virginia.

"It's a big issue for me. Parking and bus zones is a priority for us," Catoe says.

Catoe says he sees the problem on a daily basis around the region.

"I'm thinking from the safety of our customers standpoint, and also because we impact traffic. Our buses back up traffic because we can't get into the bus zone," Catoe says.

Metro is currently able to slap drivers with tickets in Metro parking lots, but the agency has never handed out fines for illegal parking in bus zones.

Most likely, Metro Transit Police officers wouldn't be the ones writing the tickets.

"I don't want to tie-up a law enforcement officer, who could be on a platform or on a bus preventing issues," Catoe says.

He says he will be asking for broader ability, giving other Metro personnel the authority to write tickets.

"The parking ticket people in the District are not police officers," says Catoe, explaining how the system could work.

Catoe also says he wants to target drivers who drive in "bus only" lanes.

The amounts of the fines still need to be determined.

In Santa Monica, Calif., riding in a "bus only" lane could land a driver a $271 to $321 fine, says Catoe, who most recently worked for the Los Angeles transportation system.

"You get one of those tickets and you start changing your driving habits," Catoe says.

(Copyright 2008 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)