How to fight a street cleaning ticket

A street cleaning ticket is issued when your vehicle is parked on a block during its posted sweeping hours. Because these rules rotate by day and side of the street, signage problems and schedule confusion are common reasons people successfully contest them.

Is it worth contesting?

These tickets carry no points and are usually moderate in cost, so contesting is mostly a question of your time versus the fine. It is often worth disputing when the sign was missing, turned, blocked, or unclear, when a holiday or weather event suspended cleaning, or when the time on the ticket falls outside the posted window. If the signs were clear and you parked during the posted hours, paying promptly may be the simpler path.

Grounds to contest

• ✓The street cleaning sign was missing, knocked down, turned, or blocked from view.
• ✓Cleaning was suspended that day for a holiday, weather, or a city announcement.
• ✓The time stamped on the ticket falls outside the posted cleaning window.
• ✓Signs on the block were contradictory about days, hours, or which side applies.
• ✓You were parked on the wrong side only because signage was ambiguous.
• ✓The ticket lists the wrong location, plate, date, or time.
• ✓A newly posted schedule had not been in effect long enough to be reasonably known.

How to contest, step by step

1. 1Check the contest deadline on your citation and start before it expires.
2. 2Photograph the block, the cleaning signs, their condition, and where your car was.
3. 3Look up whether cleaning was suspended that day on the official city website.
4. 4Find the parking authority dispute portal for your city online.
5. 5Submit your contest with photos and any suspension notice before the deadline.
6. 6Read the written decision and follow any instructions for further review if you disagree.

See also: all ticket guides · contest a ticket by city · free contest-letter generator