Minneapolis City Towing Policy Is Lunacy

Okay. Let’s talk towing.

Following Jason’s report on impounding — pretty much a requisite after the first snow emergency and subsequent festivus of impounding — I asked JD if he had found any data that showed the locations from which cars had been towed or the numbers for neighborhoods from which cars had been towed.

Unfortunately, like me, he’s still digging for that information.

By looking into the ‘where’ of towing, I’m pretty sure we could see whether or not the city’s snow emergency policy is being enforced uniformally across the city by the seasonally contracted towers; and if you’ve ever been towed, I think you’d place your bet that it’s not.

Let’s cut right to it: snow emergency days are for towing companies what the State Fair is to candybar-on-a-stick salesmen. And the best way for a towing company to make the most money is to find an area close to the impound lot that has a lot of cars on the wrong side of the street. Load ‘em up, move ‘em out, mark it down, collect the fee.

And that’s fine. Business is business, right? Doesn’t towing result more from the confusing and often whimsical regulations themselves? Or just plain laziness? That’s usually what towing reports and discussions focus on.

Wel, that and the money. Jason’s report, however, shows us that towing doesn’t make any money for the city, just for the seasonal towers. (The breakdown again is $4 for the state, $6 to Hennepin County and $24 for the city, leaving a remainder of $100 per tow for the contractors. However, the city gets all of the $34 from ticketing, and I’m really curious about that number, too for the $34 tickets.  The towers get ALL the money from the $130+ tow charge and the city even pays the difference of around $100 for the annually contracted towers!)

That means that we have a city policy that’s a boone for towers, makes no money for the city, and creates a huge headache for many garage-less residents. But if it keeps the streets clean, that’s fine, right?

The lack of uniformally towing cars, however, shows that many, many times streets get plowed while cars are still sitting on the innappropriate side of the street. The penalty? The car gets plowed in. And maybe the ire of neighbors. But that’s all, unless the neighborhood is targeted by a tow truck. Then its a clean sweep, long waits at the impound lot, and cheaper Christmas presents because of empty pockets.

We’ve got to get this changed. We shouldn’t have a snow removal system in place that partially cleans streets, doesn’t make money for the city, and worst of all drives many people crazy.

So I’m going to take to the streets with the most powerful, most effective form of polictical action available: the online petition.

Click here to read and sign it.

And since suggestions help start constructive dialogue, here are some proposed changes to the city’s snow emergency rules enforcement:

* Contracts could be given to companies with much lower rates

* Towing could only happen from a snow emergency street

* Towing could be eliminated unless another there was an additional infraction

* The odd/ even days could be replaced with just snow emergency routes/ non-emergency routes

* Something more creative and better that you came up with