Loving Arlington County - not!

Parking on my neighborhood in Arlington is terrible. Arlington did a poor job planning the parking zones here, so it is extremely difficult to find parking in zone #4, while two blocks over in zone #5, there is ample available parking. Worse, Arlington keeps removing available spots in my neighborhood. I'm guessing it is part of their ongoing campaign to get people to stop driving, as if that was realistic. Plus, they get quite the revenue stream from forcing people into metered spots. So if I get home late, I end up in metered parking (free on weekends), or parked a ten minute walk away. On Saturday night, there was no parking available at midnight, so I ended up parking in a metered spot. I didn't drive anywhere on Sunday, and forgot that I was in a metered spot, so this morning there was a lovely $25 ticket. Part of the cost of living in Arlington, I guess. It really makes me miss my driveway at home in Michigan.

Of course, Arlington County vehicles are the among the most blatant violators of the parking laws around here. Not only do they park illegally, but they often park in unsafe locations too. And as luck would have it, tonight someone left an Arlington County vehicle parked illegally, unattended, in front of a fire hydrant. I'm glad that nobody in the area had a fire.



Many people call the County the People's Republic of Arlington. I think the name fits.