There are 902 parking machines in Graz. But not all car drivers use them, because almost a million euros in penalties are open.
Who doesn’t know: a look at the clock and the fatal realization that the parking ticket has expired. You sprint to the car, hoping to just come on time. But too late: the criminated criminal ticket is already stuck behind the wiper. “160,000 criminal tickets were published in Graz last year – 1500 more than 2023,” says Thomas Fischer, head of the Graz Street office.
The palette varies from 24 to 600 euros
A third of these no longer apply to so-called violations according to the Road Traffic Regulations (STVO), ie illegal parking in the disabled parking spaces, in trailing zones or in the stop and parking ban. The rest meets the regulations for parking fee, ie parking or parking without a parking ticket in a blue or green zone.
The “first” ticket costs 24 euros or 25 euros for STVO violations. “If the organ penalty is paid, the case is done,” says Fischer. If this does not happen, the access owner will receive an anonymous provision by post. Costs: 35 euros. “If you don’t pay here, the criminal order follows,” explains the head of the Graz parking spaces.
“In this case there is a steering investigation and the access owner of the incorrectly parked car must announce who was behind the wheel.” One is then only asked for money. However, he has the opportunity to complain to the administrative court of the state if he thinks the ticket is not correct.
If you cannot or do not want to pay, you can “sit”
40,000 criminal orders are issued on average per year. The costs are between 50 and 600 euros, depending on the criminal record. If you cannot or do not want to pay, you will be executed. If the implementation is also not successful, the request for compensation is coming. This is currently affecting 51 parking offices in Graz. “But we are partly with five figures,” emphasizes Thomas Fischer.
By the way, 24,179 parking spaces in the blue and green zones are available in Graz. 2000 less than in 2018. “The reduction of the parking space mainly took place in the blue zone.” The income from parking certificates and parking lots have spent the previous year 25.1 million euros. In 2022 it was “only” 18.2 million euros.
20 percent of the Graz already falls on the beam of the mobile phone. The tendency is increasing. “There is a change here because the reimbursement is invoiced more accurately.”
Since November, a silver BMW with Zagreber registration is on the Graz Kaiser-Franz-Josef-Kai in the blue zone with a parking claw. Because the Croatian steering wheel refuses to pay the open parking sentences. More than 8000 euros have been collected. “The lady was even in our parking costs department at our department. But when she was calculated for the preliminary sum of the open punishment, she stormed in anger, “said the head of the street office, Thomas Fischer, when the case was discovered by the” Kroon “. Because only when the owner pays, the claw is removed. But apparently the lady doesn’t need her car.
Since the BMW has been approved, it is in a parking lot and does not hind traffic, it cannot be dragged. This is only possible if there are no license plates or that there is a danger in delay. The authority is now waiting for the insurance company to remove the license plate and the BMW can be dragged. After half a year, the vehicle will be in possession of the city, which can then auction to cover the majority of costs.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
