I didn't even know there was a law for such things. I just thought it was a common sense trick they taught in drivers' ed.

It looks hilly to me.

If I were these people, I would not only stop curbing my vehicle, I would completely stop putting the vehicle in park. I don't think it would take too many rampaging, out of control vehicles flying down the hills of San Francisco for these Meter Maid Nazis to get the point. Sometimes the laws in place need to be broken, along with a lot of bones and personal property, if we want to protect our freedom.

spentmiles: If I were these people, I would not only stop curbing my vehicle, I would completely stop putting the vehicle in park. I don't think it would take too many rampaging, out of control vehicles flying down the hills of San Francisco for these Meter Maid Nazis to get the point. Sometimes the laws in place need to be broken, along with a lot of bones and personal property, if we want to protect our freedom.

If you're worried about protecting your freedom you don't live in San Francisco in the first place.

Muni's are hard pressed for cash.

This is the way the law is written (1 to 3 % grade, curb the wheel)

Someone is enforcing the law, and that will generate cash.

Problem solved.

surrealbowl: So on flat ground, should they turn the wheels into the curb or away?

Yes

I'm from Nebraska, what does curb your wheels mean?

SpaceBison: I'm from Nebraska, what does curb your wheels mean?

A curb is a raised edge of a roadway.

So, is "curbing your wheels" just a term for turning the wheels so your car would roll into the curb instead of down the hill? If so, uhm, why aren't you doing that anyway? A 3% grade probably isn't too extreme as far as hills go, but it sounds dangerous as hell if your car starts rolling on its own.

too many flakes and nuts in that town.

It seems to me curbing the wheels is an outdated law. I can't see the purpose it serves. In theory it's supposed to keep your car from rolling into the street, but honestly when was the last time that's happened? Maybe back in the day it made sense given the technology in cars, but I've never encountered any instance in my lifetime.

Seeing that that is a rule that we don'T have over here; where does it come from? shiatty cars with failig hand brakes? From the time before hand brakes?

3% grade? I'm not too familiar with grading in this sense, though I should be now that I live in hillier terrain. Is 3% three feet in elevation for every 100 foot run? That's what I'm guessing.

cgraves67: I didn't even know there was a law for such things. I just thought it was a common sense trick they taught in drivers' ed.

Yeah, no kidding.

I was taught always curb your wheels, that way in the unlikely event you are rear ended while your car is parked, it will move towards the curb, and not the center of the road.

Treygreen13: [top-people.starmedia.com image 300x443]

/approves
//obscure?

No.

_{just wanted to post in a palindrome thread}

SpaceBison: I'm from Nebraska, what does curb your wheels mean?

I'm in DC, but I'm pretty sure it means turn your wheels towards the curb when you park it so that if the parking brake fails the car is likely stopped by turning in to the adjacent curb instead of barreling down a steep hill until it wallops something at the bottom at high speed.

There can be only one.

Sucks how everything has to be a big fine nowadays too, like they can't give people 10 dollar fines that you have to pay in 30 days or it gets increased. Every fee or fine or regressive tax goes up, up, up but don't you dare think about raising the progressive tax rate, that's socializmz.

SpaceBison: I'm from Nebraska, what does curb your wheels mean?

Wheels are those four round things sticking out from the bottom of cars that help them move. They are covered in rubber known as 'tires'.

Treygreen13

Good movie. Nothin' too obscure for Fark.

They have eyes, you know!

Most San Franciscans do this instinctually anyway. My wife hasn't lived in San Fran for 4 years and she still puts on the parking brake and curbs our car on flat NYC streets.

Whenever I see "Curb your (blank), I see:




_old

buckler: 3% grade? I'm not too familiar with grading in this sense, though I should be now that I live in hillier terrain. Is 3% three feet in elevation for every 100 foot run? That's what I'm guessing.

get yourself a cookie You win.

a 3% grade is an angle of 1.35 degrees. Just so you know.

Also I've parked plenty of times in SF and know about how the "curb your wheels" Nazis are making plenty of incursions into what have historically been considered "flat" areas.

Imagine you live in an area for 5 years and then one week everyone on your street gets ticketed for not curbing their wheels. It has happened more than once in the past few years and it drives people CRAZY.

especially when you try and remember the last time a handbrake has failed.

Hydra: tortilla burger: It seems to me curbing the wheels is an outdated law. I can't see the purpose it serves. In theory it's supposed to keep your car from rolling into the street, but honestly when was the last time that's happened? Maybe back in the day it made sense given the technology in cars, but I've never encountered any instance in my lifetime.

If it gives chickenshiat cops an opportunity to write chickenshiat tickets, it's a law they'll keep on the books until Rome finishes burning.

We don't have that law here (I don't think, I never park on hills), but it makes sense. The picture certainly does not make it look like a flat road. What would you suggest instead of fines to enforce this law? And would you be willing to pay higher taxes to make up for those fines?

On the one hand, it sounds like a ridiculous thing to enforce on a non-sloped road. On the other hand, why would you not curb your wheels every time you parallel park? It doesn't take much of a slope at all for a car to roll and it doesn't take any slope at all for a car to move if it's struck by another vehicle. An intelligent person wouldn't leave their vehicle without putting it in park (or 1st gear for manuals) and engaging the emergency/parking brake. Curbing the wheels is another, absolutely free level of protection that intelligent people use every time they parallel park. If you even stop to think about it, your driver training was inadequate.

If you lived on a street like this, you'd want the cops ticketing dumbasses who weren't curbing their wheels.

lucksi: Seeing that that is a rule that we don'T have over here; where does it come from? shiatty cars with failig hand brakes? From the time before hand brakes?

It comes from the fact that the hills in San Francisco are really steep and as with any friction device, parking brakes are subject to different static versus dynamic friction coefficients. This means that the handbrake may be enough to stop your car from starting to roll, but may very well be insufficient to stop it once it has already started rolling (due to an earthquake or a minor shunt for example). Applying this law on a 3 percent grade is just really dumb.

Another fun SFMTA story:

There is a long stretch of street where my girlfriend and many other of her building coworkers would park for work early every morning. You couldn't park overnight, there were signs posted forbidding it.

One evening everyone returns to their cars to see 80 dollar tickets on each car. Bewildered they call up SFMTA and demand to know what the hell they are for. They are told to look at the signs and lo and behold the signs have been changed to new "NO PARKING ANYTIME" the same damn size and the same damn shape as the old signs.

Apparently they are going to put an enhanced bike lane there, but they haven't painted the curb, nor painted the lines for the bike lane, but they DID swap in new signs IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT, so 80 bucks each please.

When people said that this sudden change wasn't fair, they responded with a very HHG-esque "well we had a community meeting and its been posted in the planning department and I can't help it if you don't take any interest in current affairs"

/even funnier: My girlfriend is an architect who regularly visits the planning department, and even she was blindsided by this change.

chuckufarlie: buckler: 3% grade? I'm not too familiar with grading in this sense, though I should be now that I live in hillier terrain. Is 3% three feet in elevation for every 100 foot run? That's what I'm guessing.

get yourself a cookie You win.

Thanks. I know a little about a lot of things, but there's some common-sense stuff I'm totally ignorant about.

meat0918: I was taught always curb your wheels, that way in the unlikely event you are rear ended while your car is parked, it will move towards the curb, and not the center of the road.

If you're rear ended, your car is going forward and your tires will simply skid. I can't imagine curinb your wheels helping at all in this situation.

surrealbowl: So on flat ground, should they turn the wheels into the curb or away?



You're supposed to carry your spirit level at all times. There's no such thing as TOTALLY flat.

mongbiohazard: SpaceBison: I'm from Nebraska, what does curb your wheels mean?

I'm in DC, but I'm pretty sure it means turn your wheels towards the curb when you park it so that if the parking brake fails the car is likely stopped by turning in to the adjacent curb instead of barreling down a steep hill until it wallops something at the bottom at high speed.

A hill is a natural elevation of the earth's surface. From what I understand these "hills" don't exist in Nebraska.

For anyone who doesn't live in SF and doesn't have experience curbing your wheels:

If you regularly park in parts of the city that seem like a 100% grade (45 degrees) you WILL curb your wheels. If you don't, you deserve a ticket. But the direction you curb them changes whether you're facing downhill or uphill.

On bumpy streets that hover around the 1.35 degree grade, the natural instinct to curb your wheels is suppressed because you don't have an inclination to turn your wheels one way or the other. It seems like neutral ground.

jtown: On the one hand, it sounds like a ridiculous thing to enforce on a non-sloped road. On the other hand, why would you not curb your wheels every time you parallel park? It doesn't take much of a slope at all for a car to roll and it doesn't take any slope at all for a car to move if it's struck by another vehicle. An intelligent person wouldn't leave their vehicle without putting it in park (or 1st gear for manuals) and engaging the emergency/parking brake. Curbing the wheels is another, absolutely free level of protection that intelligent people use every time they parallel park. If you even stop to think about it, your driver training was inadequate.

And here I just settled for the reason my mom gave me for curbing every time you parallel park: So if someone rear ends you or clips your car, it won't thrust your car directly out into traffic.