Marcus Ribi had a chuckle when he heard it was Bike to Work Week in B.C. this week.
Since the sun started to shine this spring, the 22-year-old has been cycling to work in Vancouver from his townhouse on Francis Road at the dyke.
Ribi, who lives with his mom in the complex, is a sheet metal apprentice and wanted to save some money on gas and make less of a footprint on the environment by hopping on his bike a few times a week.
Trouble is, he came home last Friday to discover a courtesy warning ticket from the City of Richmond on the windshield of his Kia, which he has to park on Francis due to his three-bedroom townhouse having only one parking spot, used by his mom.
According to the ticket, which quotes Bylaw 5870, you can’t park in front of a residence for more than three hours, between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. unless you’re a resident or owner of the premises you’re parking in front of.
“I started cycling to work last summer, at least two or three times, and I parked on the same street, on Francis, just before the dyke,” Ribi told the Richmond News.
“Some of the townhouses in here have two spots, some, like ours, just have one. The detached houses in the area that I’ve parked in front of, have at least double garages, with some parallel parking.
“The people who live in the big houses shouldn’t have the right to park in the street if I can’t. They don’t own the street parking.
“I guess it’s ironic, given that it’s Bike to Work Week and I’m trying to do my best for the environment and cut costs. They should be encouraging people to cycle to work, not giving them tickets.”
In an email to the Richmond News, city spokesperson Ted Townsend said the city is simply responding to complaints received from residents about several vehicles in the area parking in front of people’s houses for up to a week without moving.
Townsend said a bylaw officer attended the 3100 block of Francis Road on three days last week, leaving a number of warning tickets on different vehicles and issuing one parking fine for someone exceeding the 72-hour bylaw.
The fine is $50, but is reduced to $35 for early payment within 28 days.
Parking time limits, added Townsend, are “designed to encourage turnover of parking spots to ensure there is sufficient capacity to address day-to-day needs as they fluctuate throughout the day and to discourage people from using public space for their own personal, long-term convenience.”
However, the house in front of which Ribi had parked has, he said, no shortage of street parking around it during the day, with the “streets remaining practically empty.”
Asked what other solutions he has to consider, Ribi doesn’t think there are any, short of getting rid of his car, which he said isn’t an option living in west Richmond.
“I use my car in the evenings and on weekends. Living in Richmond, it’s very inconvenient if you don’t have a car, especially out here on the dyke,” he added.
“Maybe there should be a decal for people living in the same block or something?
“I leave about 6:30 a.m. for work, so my mom had to jockey my car into our sole parking spot today (Tuesday) and then she goes to work in her car and takes mine back out onto the street later. It’s not really a solution, is it?”
Bike to Work Week (BTWW) began in Greater Victoria in 1995 with a core group of commuter cyclists, about 500, committed to raising the profile of commuter cycling.
In 2016, more than 52 regions/communities across B.C. participated with 36,9987 cyclists saving an approximate $86,048 in gas that week.
