WinchesterParkingBan.us

Helpful Information for 2025

On November 17th, the Select Board agreed to investigate the overnight parking ban in order to determine if improvements could be made. In response, the following information is being provided to the Select Board.

Compliance

On any given night when the winter parking ban is in effect, there are approximately 500+ vehicles parked overnight on the street. During a snow event, that number drops slightly, but there are still hundreds of vehicles parked on the street overnight.

Documentation regarding compliance:

It is unclear to what extent the members of the TRC are aware of the non-compliance issue.

For better compliance, it is highly advised to only ticket residents during a snow prep/plowing.

Enforcement: 

Where:

Most of the enforcement occurs on (1) main roads & (2) side streets in lower-income neighborhoods (closer to the Woburn line.) https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1QfDT3OKCf9TduPD6YEMkSKN7kd4H67o&ll=42.452836532792396%2C-71.14315303558253&z=14

When:

Most ticketing occurs (1) at the beginning of the winter ban or (2) when there are neighbor complaints. There is sporadic enforcement throughout the winter, but this is usually limited to main roads. 

Frequency:

For any given winter, a vehicle which is regularly parked overnight will receive 2 or less tickets a year. Thus, there almost no motivation to find off-street parking.

Targeted Streets:

During the winter of 2023-24, the block of Hancock and Webster was specifically targeted on a near daily basis, with vehicle owners receiving hundreds of dollars in fines. This resulted in these two streets staying clear of vehicles while the surrounding streets still had vehicles parked on them on a nightly basis. I have not pulled the parking ticket data for last winter.

Documentation regarding enforcement:

In addition to maps, the actual parking ticket data can be downloaded from this page: Research/Maps https://winchesterparkingban.us/research/

Win-Win Potential

Changes to the overnight parking ban are could benefit both residents and the town. These benefits include:

  • Providing on-street parking when snow prep/plowing is not active.
  • Increased compliance with the parking ban during snow prep/plowing.
  • Less animosity toward neighbors and the Police Department.

More information:

Boston area regulations:

Overnight parking regulations for Boston-area towns (including a map): https://winchesterparkingban.us/solutions/other-towns/

Towns which have eliminated bans:

Boston-area towns who have eliminated overnight parking bans in the last 10-15 years: https://winchesterparkingban.us/research/parking-ban-repeals/

Feedback from Winchester residents

(in favor of eliminating the parking ban): https://winchesterparkingban.us/community-feedback/

Comparable towns

Overnight parking regulations of comparable towns (in terms of population): https://winchesterparkingban.us/solutions/other-towns/

Suggestions for Improvement

  • The allowance of overnight parking for any resident who is signed up for DPW alerts. (This would not involve any increased costs or management to the town; it would only necessitate sharing the sign up list with the WPD)
  • A designation of parking lots across town where vehicles could be parked overnight during snow prep/plowing, which could include: Wright Locke Farm, Wedgemere, Mystic School, and Parkhurst School.
  • Limiting the enforcement of the overnight parking ban to days/times when there is active snow prep/plowing only.
  • Adding signage around town that allows residents, prospective residents and visitors to be aware of and find out more info about the overnight parking ban.

A Simple Proposal

Allow vehicles to be parked on the street overnight if:

  1. The vehicle is registered to a town resident.
  2. The vehicle owner is subscribed to text messages from the town for snow alerts.
  3. DPW is not actively engaged in snow prepping or plowing.

Text alerts will be sent out to residents when:

  • #1 ALERT Forecasts indicate that snow plowing/prep is possible, and
  • #2 WARNING When snow plows and/or sander are being sent out.

Should residents leave their vehicles on the road after an ALERT is sent out, it is their responsibility to ensure their vehicles will be removed from the streets within 30 minutes of a WARNING.

Enforcement would occur only during snow prep and plowing.

History of The Overnight Parking Ban Petition

In February of 2024, I sent a petition to the Select Board with the request to explore alternatives to the overnight parking ban. Instead, the Select Board forwarded the petition to the TRC, which treated the suggestions as a final proposal and then rejected the petition without any public discussion. 

Crucially, the TRC did not offer any possible alternatives to the overnight parking ban, but instead made it clear that:

 (1) the needs of DPW to be able to clear the roads during a possible snow event outweigh the parking needs of residents at all other times and

 (2) the TRC believes (without evidence) that a winter parking ban is the only way to keep vehicles off the street during a snow event.

My idea was (and is) to come up with a solution that would be a win-win for residents and DPW.

Jeremy