Have you been ICEd?

[Lanny]

Lanny, can you expound on the anti-ICEing legislation in Montgomery and Howard Counties?

Montgomery County Bill 32-13 passed on March 4 and went into effect on July 11, 2014.

Here is the relevant portion of the new law.
Montgomery County Code § 31-26B. Parking spaces reserved for a plug-in vehicle.
(c) A person may not stop, stand, or park a vehicle that is not a plug-in vehicle in a space that:
(1) is marked for use of plug-in vehicles with an official sign that conforms to regulations adopted pursuant to Section 31-23; and
(2) provides access to a plug-in vehicle recharging station.

I recently spoke to a traffic engineer who works for Montgomery County and was told that an "official sign" as referenced in the code basically means a sign that conforms to the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways (MUTCD).

As far as I know, none of the charging stations in the county, including the Montgomery Mall Supercharger, have an official MUTCD sign posted and are thus currently unenforceable.

I worked with my Howard County Council representative on CB36-2014 which is modeled on the Montgomery County bill with the notable exception that Howard County enforcement allows for towing where Montgomery County enforcement is only a fine. The Howard County law went into effect on September 29, 2014.

I've written the following blog posts if you care to read more detail on the path to legislation in these two Maryland counties.

Blog Post 1: Law Prohibits “ICEing” of Charging Stations in Montgomery County, MD

Blog Post 2: Howard County Proposes Legislation to Prohibit “ICEing”

Lanny

 

[andrewket]

Nice. Thanks for taking the time.

 

[green1]

As far as I know, none of the charging stations in the county, including the Montgomery Mall Supercharger, have an official MUTCD sign posted and are thus currently unenforceable.

That has been the consistent complaint. a P with a red circle with line through it on a white sign with the words "except EV while charging" would go a very long way towards discouraging people from parking in these spots, and in almost every jurisdiction would make it enforceable without any further rule changes. It's unfortunate that we have to resort to changing the laws because Tesla won't use standard signage.

 

[swegman]

Lanny, thanks for the info. Unfortunately, it seems that without the proper signage, the laws have no bite.

 

[Lanny]

a P with a red circle with line through it on a white sign with the words "except EV while charging" would go a very long way towards discouraging people from parking in these spots,

Agree.

and in almost every jurisdiction would make it enforceable without any further rule changes.

Don't necessarily agree. Especially when it comes to parking enforcement on private property.

It's unfortunate that we have to resort to changing the laws because Tesla won't use standard signage.

Actually there are Some Supercharger sites that display the sign with the international no-parking symbol with Except for Electric Vehicle Charging. (MUTCD R7-11)

Lanny

 

[Science->Truth]

Hi ABVA,

Wow, that photo of seven of the eight Superchargers ICEd in Woodbridge dramatically proves there is a problem.

Perhaps you can send that picture to the Prince William County Supervisors. Chickensevil has started a thread about his effort to get the ball rolling on legislation in Prince William County. He has already gotten a positive response from Supervisor Frank J. Principi. I've offered to help since I recently went through the process of getting anti-ICEing legislation passed in Montgomery and Howard Counties in Maryland.

Here is the thread.

Lanny

I am in FL, and traveled last week up I-75 to Atlanta for a work meeting, needing to rely on superchargers. The Macon, GA one has, I think, 8 slots, but both days driving thru only one slot was open. One other Tesla was in a slot each time, all others ICEd. This supercharger is downtown, and I think some slots likely are ICEed for the entire workday. It is goiing to be tough when we stop at, say, 11am for a 20 min chg, and have to wait until the evening to be able to continue on our journey, likely missing the meeting we were traveling for.

 

[Lanny]

The Macon, GA one has, I think, 8 slots, but both days driving thru only one slot was open. One other Tesla was in a slot each time, all others ICEd.

It appears that four of the eight Supercharger stalls in Macon are designated "60 minute general parking." I suppose to be fair, we can't call those ICEd unless the cars are proven to have been there longer than an hour.

Regardless of that, it sounds like Macon has a potential problem of getting access. I hope you called Tesla and reported what you saw.

Lanny

 

[Cottonwood]

Regardless of that, it sounds like Macon has a potential problem of getting access. I hope you called Tesla and reported what you saw.

Or e-mail a picture from your smartphone directly to [email protected] with a few words of context. A picture is often worth much more than a thousand words...

 

[Merrill]

This kind of stuff happens at any EV charging station, I was in a park the other day where there were 2 level 2 charge point units and when I pulled in, did not need a charge so parked 100 feet away and both were being used by a Leaf and 500e. When they were done a old Toyota camry pulled in to one of the Chargers and got out and went for a walk. I think until EV charging stations put a sign saying EV parking only, violators will be towed at there own expense, $200 fine. Both Tesla and the other charging stations need to get tough or you will continue to get ICE car parking in EV spots.

 

[JST]

No one's going to ICE me.

 

[Merrill]

No one's going to ICE me.

That awesome, got to get me some of those!!!!!

 

[plaeuschler]

I blame Tesla. This problem was obvious before the first SuperCharger was opened. You design parking spaces, people are gonna park. They don't read, they don't listen, they don't observe. They just park their car and go do their thing, and don't care what you think. Or if they do know about Tesla they knowingly park their car their just to "get back" at the rich Tesla owners or something.

The situation is ugly and will stay that way until Tesla rethinks the design -- and location -- of SuperChargers.

Guess this is a question of awareness, but also culture and respect. Last Saturday at lake of Lucerne : Parking was crowded, and Superchargers were the only spaces not taken!

 

[gene]

I had these cards printed which appeal (hopefully) to the ICEr's kinder side:

 

[SamGarber]

I was LEAFed at Short Hills mall. Had to ask a store employee to move demo car and stretch cord. Leaf was parked in middle of two spots where HPWC reaches easily. There were no outlets nearby. Why?

 

[andrewket]

I was LEAFed at Short Hills mall. Had to ask a store employee to move demo car and stretch cord. Leaf was parked in middle of two spots where HPWC reaches easily. There were no outlets nearby. Why?

Person parked, tried to use hpwc, realized it wouldn't work, and walked away?

Or..

Jerk who can't afford a Model S and thought he would make a statement.

 

[ggr]

At San Juan Capistrano this morning, there were three Model S occupying 1A, 2A and 3A respectively, and a Toyota Camry taking up the unpaired charger, so I could only get dregs. I don't know whether it was just luck that the three people charging were doing it optimally, or if the community as a whole is getting smarter about this.

 

[dhrivnak]

I leave the following note in 20pt font on the windshield

Please do not park in the places for electric vehicles. At the moment there are not many places to charge an electric car and many of us early adopters plan our routes on how and where we can charge. If we arrive and all parking spaces are full we could be left stranded.

By having people drive electric vehicles it helps you by helping to keep a lid on the demand and price of gasoline. If demand for gasoline drops then the prices can stabilize, but if we all use more gas we can be sure the prices will continue to rise.

So please help keep these spaces open for those people that need them.

Thank you

 

[gene]

These are cards I had made up:

 

[Lanny]

I'm personally not a big fan of putting personal notes on vehicles, even if they are guilty of ICEing a charging station. If the offender doesn't care to honor the signs and other markings indicating the spot is reserved for EV charging, then they probably won't take a note from you very seriously either.

I think the "note" the police left on the windshield of this SUV is probably more effective in getting their attention and changing behavior. The ticket indicated a fine of $35.00 for, “parking restriction violation non electric car in electric spot.” The citation was written under Howard County, MD ordinance 21.207c3 which I helped get introduced and passed earlier this year.

Montgomery County, MD, where there is a Supercharger, has a similar law. Charging stations need to be marked with a sign that conforms to specified regulations or standards in order to be enforceable in both counties.

Local people take note, parking violations can be reported by calling the following police non-emergency numbers.

Montgomery County, MD – 301-279-8000
Ref: Montgomery County Code Sec. 31-26B

Howard County, MD – 410-313-2200
Ref: Howard County Code Sec. 21.207 and 21.221

Lanny

 

[rsquared99]

Way to go Lanny! Don't just complain about it, do something. Head of the class move.