By Adam Nichols
DNAinfo News Editor
MANHATTAN — An NYPD official claims a new muni-meter "fairness" bill proposed by the City Council will lead to street fights between ticket issuers and irate motorists desperate to beat the meter.
The proposed bill calls for agents to cancel parking tickets if motorists show a metered receipt within 10 minutes of the fine being issued. The proposal is aimed at preventing motorists from being ticketed in the minutes it takes them to walk to a muni-meter to pay.
However, NYPD Inspector Michael Pilecki told a council meeting Tuesday that the rules could result in attacks on ticket agents, according to the New York Post.
"There were 258 physical attacks on our traffic-enforcement agents in 2010, ranging from drivers slapping them and spitting on them to wresting their parking-ticket devices away from them, to serious assault causing significant injuries," he told the paper.
The new rule "would exacerbate the potential for conflict between motorists and enforcement personnel by encouraging dialogue and argument about whether a driver is entitled to have his or her summons canceled on the spot," Pilecki said.
The council's Transportation Committee expects the bill to pass within a few months, despite an expected veto by Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
"It is a constant, daily occurrence," said committee chairman James Vacca (D-Bronx).
"People are being ticketed unjustifiably. There is an abusive situation taking place."
