Parking Ticket - Cottage Grove (Howe: home, cost, law)

[tampac66]

At my house/community we have several parking spaces out front for residents and their guests. I've been parking in these spaces when i go home for lunch for 3 years now with no problem, until yesterday when I (and 4 other people) got a ticket for parking facing the wrong direction.

I know that when parking "on" the street you are supposed to face the direction of traffic, but in my view, these are spaces are not on the street (as they gravel, not paving, and are separated by planting and trees, and bollards) and therefore it shouldn't matter.

The relevant section of the law is as follows:

Sec. 545.303. ADDITIONAL PARKING REGULATIONS. (a) An operator who stops or parks on a two-way roadway shall do so with the right-hand wheels of the vehicle parallel to and within 18 inches of the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway.

As far as i can tell, there is not a definition of "roadway" in this section of the transportation code. However, i found this in a previous section.

Sec. 541.302. TRAFFIC AREAS. In this subtitle:
(11) "Roadway" means the portion of a highway, other than the berm or shoulder, that is improved, designed, or ordinarily used for vehicular travel. If a highway includes at least two separate roadways, the term applies to each roadway separately.

The image below is the area in reference. By the definition above, my view would be that the truck in the distance is parking in the roadway because that area is normally used for vehicular travel, whereas the gravel parking spaces are not.



Another point would be, that if these gravel parking spaces are considered the roadway, then the first space shown in the picture would be illegal to park in, because you cannot street park within 20ft of a intersection.

Does anyone have any experience with this stuff that could help me understand the laws and/or the definition of a "roadway" in this instance? Is this ticket contestable?

The ticket is only 40$ and it will cost me 10$ to contest it and probably 10$ to park for the hearing, but it's a matter of principle.

[astrohip]

You have my sympathy, this is clearly a petty situation.

Having said that... I think you got no chance in Hades. You're on the city side of the easement (anything on the street side of a sidewalk is the "city's side'), and therefore, city rules.

Pay the ticket, call it a cheap-ish education.

[Prey521]

Yeah, you're not gonna win that one.