Last month, we asked for photos of public servants parking obnoxiously, and our readers delivered. Here are some select snapshots of city vehicles parked egregiously without an emergency in sight.
It may be a stereotype, but cafes and donut shops actually do seem to be magnets for illegally parked city vehicles -- regardless of the blockages that result. Here, Claire Vlach spotted a couple of cops making a stop at La Boulange, blocking the transit lane on Sutter Street and delaying a number of Muni lines, like the notoriously overcrowded and sluggish 30-Stockton:
Firefighters get donut and coffee cravings too. James Corrigan spotted this fire truck left blocking a traffic lane on Judah Street at 9th Avenue in the Inner Sunset. While they're not blocking the N-Judah, at least, the truck was left sitting between a boarding island and the sidewalk, leaving car drivers and bike riders with the choice of illegally using the raised track bed (which is pretty dangerous on a bike), squeezing over or around the island, or using a different street altogether. When Corrigan asked the firefighters about their parking job, he said they just gave him excuses.
The Market Street bikeway continues to be a favorite parking spot for police. Ian Leighton caught this SFPD vehicle parked in the same spot where we spied another police cruiser last September:
But as any regular Market bike commuter knows, the range of vehicles in San Francisco's premier "protected" bike lanes is diverse. It includes mail trucks, maintenance trucks, and even Muni buses.
Leighton also spotted this trifecta of vehicles in the 7th Street bike lane at Bryant Street, as if SoMa's streets weren't already hairy enough:
To cap it off, Corrigan shows us the handiwork of the most obnoxious parker in his neighborhood. With access to a city vehicle, this person can apparently park anywhere with impunity. Here, we see the car parking in what Corrigan says is its typical location: blocking a fire hydrant and encroaching on a crosswalk at 10th Avenue and Kirkham Street.
