MetroMile is a connected driving startup that aims to “reinvent urban driving.” It has announced a new feature today, one that will help drivers avoid one of the most common parking tickets – street sweeping. It happens quite often, you park your car unaware of faded, painted curb warnings only to return and find a ticket on your windshield. In San Francisco the city collected over $29 million from street sweeping tickets alone in 2011, and ticket prices have increased over the years, currently its a $64 ticket. MetroMile offers a very simple solution.
Using the MetroMile app and Metronome device, both available for free, drivers can simply park their cars without having to worry about the ticket. If they park in a zone where street sweeping is to take place within 12 hours, MetroMile will send drivers an email as well as a push notification on their smartphones to tell them that they’re parked in a street cleaning zone. Another reminder will be sent one hour before street cleaning is due to begin.
In cities like San Francisco, this app is very useful. It probably won’t serve much purpose in cities like Paris, where streets are cleaned without clearing cars from curbs. Parking ticket fines in Paris are actually quite low, a regular ticket is 17 Euros, and if that is not paid within 45 hours, it goes up to 33 Euros. Even if the car is parked in a forbidden area, such as a fire lane, tickets start at just 35 Euros.
Cost of living might be comparable between San Francisco and Paris, but that doesn’t change the fact that citizens of the former have to worry about then often unavoidable street sweeping ticket. MetroMile will go a long way to put drivers in the city at ease. The feature will be available for all drivers by March 31st. It only covers San Francisco for now, more cities will be added in the future.
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