It's That Time of Year Again: Winter Parking Rules in Madison, Wisconsin

This morning I got in my car and noticed a folded piece of paper under my windshield wiper. I was in a bit of a rush, like every morning, so I pulled into traffic and rolled down my window. I turned my windshield wipers on and, steering with my right hand, stuck my left arm out the window and reached for the dirty piece of paper as it went back and forth under the wipers. You have to time these things right, you know. I got it on the second wiper wipe, and I think only one lady saw me flailing out the window. Not bad.

So anyway, the piece of paper had some pretty relevant information on it. Do you ever park on the street overnight in Madison like I do? As of November 15th, you and I will have to pay attention to which side we park on.

• The Rules:
  
  Vehicles must be parked on the even house numbered side of the street from 1am until 7am on even numbered days, and on the odd house numbered side of the street from 1am until 7am on odd numbered days.
  
  Madison's alternate side parking rules are in effect from November 15th through March 15th. The rules are in effect for most of Madison seven days a week regardless of weather conditions.
  
  A Snow Emergency will be declared whenever it becomes necessary to plow streets. During a Snow Emergency, you may park on the designated alternate side as usual, but off-street parking would be best. If you're downtown during a Snow Emergency, you can park for free in the cashiered sections of city-owned parking ramps from 9pm to 7am. A Snow Emergency will remain in effect for a minimum of 48 hours to give crews an opportunity to clear both sides of the streets.

You can get a text whenever a Snow Emergency is declared by signing up at my.cityofmadison.com. However, you know you'll mess this up at least once:

• The Fines:
  
  In the Alternate Side Parking Zone, the parking violation will remain at $20 unless there is a Declared Snow Emergency in which case the parking violation will be increased to $60.
  
  If you get towed during a Snow Emergency (it's happened to the best of us), you'll get a $60 alternate side parking violation ticket, plus a $50 towing fee.

So....Happy Holidays!

If you want to know more, go to www.cityofmadison.com/winter