The Parking Ticket Debate in California, Pennsylvania

Residents or visitors to California, Pennsylvania, may have found a present on their car's windshield in the past. A parking ticket under the wiper blade has the power to make the driver of the car wince.

Meter violations don't cost much money - only $1 if paid in the first 60 minutes and $2 if paid within two hours. After that, the owner will be charged $7 for having an expired meter.

Other parking violations which could cause a driver a ticket include being out of the stall, parking during street sweeping times, parking in a private lot, having the left wheel to the curb, parking in front of a fire hydrant, parking in a driveway, on the sidewalk, in an alley, or in a handicap spot.

Patrolman Curtis Rice from the California Police also said that it's important for people to remember that it is against borough ordinance to park in a seeded area, in other words in the grass.

Violations other than an expired meter all cost $15. Parking in a spot designated as handicap, however, will cost $50.

Employees of PNC Bank on Third Street don't get the same feeling when they receive a ticket. Unfortunately for them, the bank doesn't offer employee parking. This forces them to park in metered parking. They receive a ticket almost daily.

"Sometimes it's easier to get a ticket than going out all day and putting money in the meter," Kristen Ranieri, a teller at PNC Bank said.

Even though she usually rides with someone else, Ranieri said that the employees who park at meters pay $7 per day for the tickets they receive.

According to Raineri, her and her coworkers usually work from 9:30 to 4:30 Monday through Friday. That means they work for about 7 hours a day.

Parking meters accept quarter, giving you 45 minutes, and dimes, which give you 15 minutes time. In order to park on the street in front of the meter for 7 and 15 minutes it would cost a total of $2.50. For the $7 they pay for a ticket they could have parked on the street for 21 hours, or three workdays.