La Crosse alternate-side parking enforcement much higher for first month this winter

Apparently La Crosse’s police chief wasn’t kidding when he hinted at increased enforcement of the city’s alternate-side parking rules this year.

During talks last fall about shrinking the alternate-side parking enforcement period, chief Ron Tischer talked about the money his department would lose.

“With the debt we incurred with the new parking ramp, equipment, salaries, we can’t afford to lose $35,000,” he said.

It’s probably no surprise then that we’ve found, despite not a whole lot of snow falling in La Crosse so far this winter, enforcement has accelerated dramatically.

The first month of enforcement this winter, police wrote 5,386 tickets. Less than half of that amount were written during the first month of enforcement last year. And it’s 2,000 fewer written during the first month two years ago.

Just over 13,000 alternate-side parking tickets were written all of last winter in the city.

Alternate side parking started two weeks later this season due to a rule change by the city council and will end two weeks earlier.

It was during debate over the change, when Tischer hinted at the increased enforcement by citing the money that would be lost.