Wvw Girls Set Marks In Winning Invitational

By P. DOUGLAS FILAROSKI; Times Leader Staff Writer
 Saturday, January 28, 1995 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1A 





WILKES-BARRE -- Plug the meter `til 3 -- the final few hours are free. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Ah, the slogan of the good old days, when police cutbacks meant motorists
got some slack at the parking meters. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The good ole days are bygone days now, though. New police hires have
increased parking enforcement, hitting car owners where it hurts -- on the
windshield and in the wallet. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 It's driving some motorists mad. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But police aren't apologizing. City ordinances require meters to be plugged
from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., except Sundays. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "The way I see it, I'd tell `em, `Look at what you got away with for all
this time,' " said Wilkes-Barre police Lt. Bill Barrett. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Admittedly, motorists may have been getting a free ride in late afternoons
since 1992, when the number of city motorcycle cops was cut from five to two,
Barrett said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 In the first 15 days of this year, the department's ticket window took 685
payments from parking violators, compared to 442 in that period last year. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Even factoring in four snow days last year -- with little parking or
enforcement at that time -- the numbers represent about an 18 percent
increase. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The flurry of white tickets dropping on drivers' windshields is done by
motorcycle cops who focus solely on parking enforcement. They work from 8 a.m.
to 4 p.m., or from 9 to 5. But they have frequent court or accident duty from
2 p.m. to 5 p.m. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 That leaves it up to car officers working 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. to pick up the
slack. Until recently, though, tight staffing precluded those officers from
spending time ticketing cars. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But landing a federal crime law grant to fund hiring new officers, and an
administration decision to fill vacant positions, has freed up night-shift
officers to do ticketing. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Patrol Capt. Thomas Parker said police have been assigning car officers to
issue tickets from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. with increasing frequency. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "With summer vacations over and more officers on the force we can assign
someone to ticket from 3 to 6 almost every day now," he said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Police say as long as the law is the law, they're going to enforce it,
whether it's 8 a.m., 2 p.m. or 5:59 p.m. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "It reminds me of people's attitudes about traffic lights," Barrett said.
"They think just because it's 4 a.m., and there's no cars on the road, they
can go through a red light. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "That's not true," he said. "The same goes for parking meters. If they're
expired, you're going to get a ticket." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

`free' Meter Time Runs Out For Motorists 
Unlike The Past, Cars Parked At Unplugged 
Meters Between 3 P.m. And 6 P.m., Sundays Excepted, 
Likely Will Be Ticketed Now That The Police 
Department Has Additional 
Manpower

`free' Meter Time Runs Out For Motorists Unlike The Past, Cars Parked At Unplugged Meters Between 3 P.m. And 6 P.m., Sundays Excepted, Likely Will Be Ticketed Now That The Police Department Has Additional Manpower