Meter-Made
Toronto, ON
Female, 30
I currently work as a Parking Enforcement Officer in the wonderful city of Toronto. I am feared, and loathed by all. I may not work in your particular city, but I'm positive that I can help give you a better understanding of what Meter Maids do. I am knowledgeable in all parking matters so ask me anything.
This question was asked on April 29, 2012. I answered the following: We do not have a quota. We do have a performance standard that we have to attain to show that we are actually out there working. The city has calculated the average ticket number in every area in the city, and officers assigned to these zones should be getting roughly the same amount as their counterparts on different shifts.
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I really wouldn't be able to answer that question efficiently without seeing a photo or being familiar with the area. In most cases the meter you pay for is the one cloeset to your car.
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If the license plate on the ticket was written incorrectly the ticket is not valid. In any case take this ticket to a first appearance facility listed on the back of the ticket to ensure it gets cancelled. It is also important to do this since the license plate listed on the ticket may belong to someone else and they will be getting a court notification of impending conviction. To save this poor person the trouble of proving they were never parked at that location I would make sure that you do this ASAP. It is also a good idea to take your ownership with you to prove that the license plate was indeed incorrect.
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My mood doesn't have anything to do with my productivity. If more people are parked illegally then I give out more tickets. If no one is out that day, the amount of tickets I give out decreases. I will admit that I'm less inclined to deal with peoples theatrics when i am in a bad mood, but it doesn't affect my work performance.
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If the ticket was not served to your vehicle then you are home free. It doesn't mean that the ticket is invalid either as it was written justly. Contrary to popular belief, there is still a record of individuals who "get away" before the ticket is issued. If the officer has already printed the ticket and just hasn't served it to your vehicle, all of that information is still on record and is marked as "drove away" as opposed to "served."
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I can't really answer your question without knowing what area you were parked in , My suggestion to you is to call the department that deals with Parking in your city and to inquire about their specific rules. Or you can also stop and ask the next parking officer you see for clarification. I am assuming that you were using an old styled meter where you put money directly into a meter, and not a "pay and display" machine. The only rules we have for the old style meters is that the meter closest to the car is the one to be used. If there is a broken meter or a missing meter, it is the responsibility of the driver to find another spot to park in. As for visibility and the signage for meters, the instructions for use and times of use are displayed on the actual meter themselves. The meters are always adjacent to the parking space. Again I do suggest you talk to someone who is actually familiar with the area in question, and for the city you were in.
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We keep track of people parked in areas with specific time allowances by chalking the tires of the car. If we return after the allowed time and the tires of a car still have the chalk marks on it, we are able to ticket it. You are allowed to move to a nearby spot and start the process again. There is also another method that is used when chalking tires is not possible (bad weather etc.) which is called valve stemming. We take note of the position of the air valve on the tires of the car and if they are in the same position as when we first noted them, we are able to ticket them for parking in excess of the permitted time.
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