The City of Malden began enforcement at 9pm last night with the start of the snow emergency. Given the forecast for the storm, the priority was on making sure all primary roads (emergency arteries) were addressed first. We start by ticketing these streets. The Malden Police then followed up after midnight with towing operations.

Towing operations were focused on the main arteries. The primary goal is to make the streets passable for traffic and public safety. Hundreds of cars were towed. Given there are over 200 streets in Malden that don’t allow parking on either side, the Police have to prioritize towing and utilize resources in a way that achieves the most meaningful impact citywide. Given we have the most stringent snow emergency parking rules of any city around, It’s simply not possible to tow in a short period of time every vehicle in violation of our rules.

Secondary roads were generally not towed unless a vehicle was parked in such a way that made the plowing of the street impossible. The DPW is in constant contact with the Malden Police Department when they feel this is the case. Otherwise, generally the penalty was a $25 fine for violation of winter parking or snow emergency rules. This will of course leave many cases where cars pull out later in the day and leave behind the snow around the car. It’s a common occurrence in most urban cities.

This storm ended up being much more intense than forecast. We remind residents to be patient, to help your neighbors, and to remember that this too shall pass. Opening day is in 24 days, and 1 week from today temperatures will be in the 50’s.