SF trying to collect $38 million in tickets

We’ve all been there. You forgot to move your car on street cleaning day or maybe the parking meter expired while you were chowing down at Greens for lunch. Either way, you are now stuck with a ticket. A big fat ugly ticket.

Well, have we got news for you: San Francisco wants you to pay those tickets! I know, crazy, right?

Go dig that old ticket out of your glove box, pull out your wallet, and fill up The City’s empty coffers. And do it fast, because between October 2006 and April 2010, San Franciscans have amassed a incredible $38,387,155 in unpaid parking tickets, according to data from the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency. That equals out to 678,121 unpaid parking tickets.

During that same time, another 5.9 million tickets totaling $374 million were paid off, to give SFTMA a nearly 90 percent collection rate. It’s normal for there to be an outstanding balance of parking tickets but SFMTA’s spokesman, Paul Rose, admits the city could definitely use the money:

“It is unrealistic to expect that the agency would collect on 100 percent of citations. Of course those funds would certainly be helpful.”

SF parking citation revenue helps fund Muni’s operating budget and Muni has already seen service cuts and higher fares in recent years.

Also, your unpaid parking tickets could cause holds on DMV registration and residential parking permits, your vehicle can be booted, and they can even intercept your state taxes and lottery winnings.