More SF Parking Tickets Likely As MTA Copes With Budget Gap

SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS)— San Francisco's Transportation Director acknowledged Monday that more than two dozen parking control officers will be writing more tickets in the upcoming year, a move that came just as his department revealed a projected budget shortfall.

The MTA ended up with a last-minute $17 million budget deficit when Muni workers won unexpected gains at the bargaining table. The apparent solution is to hire 27 more parking officers and to collect an additional $6.5 million in additional parking fines from the city's motorists.

Transportation Director Ed Reiskin denied his agency is targeting motorists to balance the budget, but admitted as much during an exchange with Supervisor Scott Wiener at a city budget hearing Monday.

"The increase in parking enforcement - was this already something that was planned and if so why was that revenue not in the original budget?" Wiener asked.

KCBS' Barbara Taylor Reports:

Reiskin admitted the events did coincide, acknowledged his department's budget gap, but maintained that the driving force is the need to be able to enforce parking laws across the city.

Supervisors countered by questioning why the move was taking place prior to planned upgrades of a number of city parking meters.

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