Meter Patroller Racks Up Ticketing Record

Rick McCord really is a nice guy, even though he issued far more parking tickets between June and January than any other meter patroller.

McCord handed out 9,951 tickets in those six months - 2,238 more than the second-highest ticketer.

He said he wasn’t aiming for any record. If you spy him down the street from your car in his parking cart, he’ll even take back your ticket.

“I’m totally not aware of any of the numbers,” said McCord, 37, who’s been a meter patroller a little more than a year.

Ten people in the city’s parking meter department can write tickets, supervisor Charlie Allen said. Between three and six write tickets every day working staggered shifts.

Allen was surprised when told McCord was a writing record.

“There’s so many variables as to why someone outwrites tickets,” Allen said. “The No. 2 meter patroller has been meter collecting and doesn’t write many tickets. Otherwise, it could have been the other way around.”

Meter patrollers don’t just circle downtown streets looking for expired meters and marking cars that have parked for longer than two hours.

They also help stranded cars and look for handicapped parking violations.

“This gives you the exposure,” said McCord as he drove the handicapped parking enforcement car. “You come across cars that are stalled. This car has a push bar. You can push them off the road to safety. One of the main emphases is to help the public.”

But the main emphasis is to write tickets and make sure the meters are working.

The meter patrollers know the chronic violators, the cars they ticket day after day.

“You work with it all day long,” McCord said. “You do become accustomed to them just because of the routes downtown.”