 A new snow ordinance in Grand Rapids is catching some people by surprise. People who leave their car parked along the street can be ticketed. Hedy Clotter has the story. If the streets are lined up with cars parked on both sides, emergency vehicles aren't able to get through. It then becomes a matter of public safety, according to Grand Rapids Police Chief Scott Johnson. We have to be able to get to emergencies such as fires, medical emergencies, and that sort of thing. And the ordinance we had just was not working. The existing snow ordinance was amended to exclude certain routes and snow plowing on multiple days. No one is allowed to park on the street between November 1st and May 1st as long as snow removal operations are in progress. This is the ordinance that we found we had to put in place in Grand Rapids in order to efficiently and effectively clear streets so that our public safety vehicles can get down the street in case of an emergency. Once the snow is removed, anyone is free to park until the next time the roads need to be plowed. U.S. Highway 38 was in the process of being cleared out to improve safety and visibility. During the winter, as the windrows grow with the amount of snow we've had, their lanes narrow up and we're trying to widen the road back to the gutter. The city and men dot work collaboratively to clear the highways within the city. Once the snow is loaded up in the truck, it's brought over to a snow dump. Since the ordinance was implemented on December 28, 130 tickets have been issued. One man told me he received a ticket and had to pay the $15 fine for a car that's not running. His solution was moving the car into his driveway. When the plows have to be out to clear the streets, we ask people to move their vehicles off from the street until the plows come through then they can park back on the street again. Some of the cars on the street aren't operable or have expired documentation so people choose to park on the street. Tom Walters appreciates the new rules. Well probably something had to be done because some cars are parked on the edge of the street for quite a long period of time. And I think they tried to warn the people to give them a little warning at first and I can see where they get the city gets kind of exasperated at the time because some people don't move their cars. If it snows more than two inches they will come out and plow the snow. In Grand Rapids, Haiti Clotter, Lakeland News. And the public is made aware of the snow plowing efforts through social media and through the radio. If you've enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News, please consider making a tax deductible contribution to Lakeland Public Television.