'No Savesies': Philadelphia police remove cones illegally saving parking spaces
Once you leave street parking, the spot is fair game. But some people don't abide by that rule.
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Parking can be a sport in Philadelphia. There's nothing worse than finally finding a spot, then finding cones in that empty space.
Some say they move the cones, but others don't want the drama that could come with that.
That's why the Philadelphia Police 15th District is stepping in.
They're going to enforce the rule: "No savesies."
Once you leave street parking, the spot is fair game. But some people don't abide by that rule.
"How are you going to hold it from 7 o'clock in the morning to 5 o'clock in the afternoon?" said Michael Farrington of Northeast Philadelphia.
"Very frustrating. You feel like pulling out your hair," says Revonne Benton of Holmesburg.
Now, police are rounding up orange cones. In just one day they were able to recover 102 cones.
"The only reason they stopped is because they ran out of space in the wagons and cars they were using," said Captain Marques Newsome.
Newsome decided to do something after hearing frustrations over spot-saving at a community town hall.
"They think that we aren't listening, but we are listening," said Newsome.
Some people would rage this is a waste of officer time, but this has the potential to escalate.
"We've seen it happen time and time again, unfortunately, in our city. If they were to move the cones, they get vandalism reports because the car has become vandalized, which can create fights and can lead to shootings. So actually it's a crime prevention effort as well," said Newsome.
Drivers know that all too well.
"You're afraid of retaliation if you move the cones," says Sheryl Sindore of Wissinoming.
Captain Newsome says this has been such a successful operation he's planning on doing this weekly or biweekly.
So, if you have cones out there in the 15th district, you might want to pick them up before the police do.
