Somerville using robot cameras to keep up with parking enforcement
SOMERVILLE – The City of Somerville is cracking down on illegal parking with new automated cameras called "SafetySticks."
"It is very hard to catch these types of violations because people pull over, and put on the flashers, and think it's no big deal," explains Suzanne Rinfret, The Director of Parking in Somerville.
The roughly 4-foot camera polls will monitor areas of Davis Square. The goal isn't to catch someone who overstays their welcome at a meter, but to stop people from parking in safety zones. This could be a bus stop, a crosswalk, or in front of a fire hydrant.
"When you block a crosswalk, and the sight line for other vehicles approaching the crosswalk, they may not see that person in the crosswalk," Rinfret said.
"If I get off of the bus near a crosswalk I wait for the bus to leave," said Tom Gilbert, a Somerville resident who is partially blind. "I can't walk in front of that bus if someone is going to come around and run me over."
"Bus lanes, I think that is a good place for them because double parking causes a lot of trouble with the busses. Then the buses cause traffic because they can't pull in," added Daniel Ferrer, another Somerville resident.
During a 67-day test of the software, the city averaged seven violations a day. The results come from only three safety sticks in the Davis Square area.
The Somerville Traffic Department says it is hard to keep track of all of the violations because a single enforcement officer can't be everywhere all of the time.
"We didn't have any signage up saying there was camera enforcement in place," said Rinfret, talking about the pilot period. "Once the sign goes up that says, 'A camera is in place,' that will deter people from parking illegally. Hopefully we can change behavior, and let people know that it's not safe to do. We don't want to issue tickets. We would rather be educating folks in compliance."
The city hopes to have the cameras fully operational by the start of the new year. If you are found in violation, then a ticket will be mailed to you.
