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City Council Rescinds Ban On Parking At Broken Meters

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — The Los Angeles City Council voted Wednesday to rescind a policy that allows the city to ticket people for parking at broken parking meters.

The policy passed in 2010 and reaffirmed by the City Council in 2012 required the Department of Transportation to cite any drivers who park their vehicles at inoperable meters.

Council members voted 13-0 on the measure introduced by Councilman Mike Bonin to end citations, but also planned to revisit the decision in six months in the event of any marked increase in vandalism of parking meters.

City Council Votes On Broken Meters

"Dinging people for parking at a broken meter in a city that doesn't have sufficient parking is government being on people's backs instead of being on people's side," Bonin said.

Opponents of the proposal argue drivers would often intentionally break city meters in order to avoid having to pay.

New meters that accept both coins and credit cards have since been installed that alert city officials when a malfunction is detected.

(©2013 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

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