06/12/2021 6:00 AM
Clarín.com
Cities
Updated 06/12/2021 6:00 AM
Although the parking restrictions returned to being as if every day were Sunday in the City, there are regulations that are still in force and that
is
why the
towing service continues to operate
, in charge of two companies that have expired contracts since 2001 and operate with successive extensions.
And among motorists, complaints persist about
hauling that they consider unjustified and the way they treat vehicles.
According to a tour made by
Clarín
, there are cranes that circulate at a
higher speed than allowed.
And vehicles that "flutter" hanging and thus cross potholes, gutters and other obstacles posed by the streets of Buenos Aires.
According to official information, before the beginning of the restrictions due to the pandemic, there were
between 13 and 15 thousand monthly hauls
, on average.
The number dropped dramatically in April 2020, when only 27 were made in the entire month.
This year, with the circulation almost normalized,
there were 9 thousand hauls in the whole of April, 36% less compared to a prepandemic month,
and although the number grows as the circulation increases, it is still below the usual.
As for hauling, the cost to recover the vehicle is $ 4,350, while the fine for bad parking is $ 3,905.
Each of the companies has
12 cranes
.
In the City, complaints continue about the mistreatment of vehicles carried by tow trucks and speeding.
Photo: Mario Quinteros
What happens if a driver who is going to retire his vehicle notices that it has
damages that were not there before it was hauled?
From the Buenos Aires government they explained that if the crane company damages a vehicle during the hauling (
includes dents or mechanical breaks)
, it must take charge of the repair.
For that, you
have specific insurance.
On the other hand, if one of the cranes performs improper maneuvers (speeding or non-compliance with the hauling process safely)
, the driver and the company can
also
be penalized.
For that, in addition to the control cameras, each shipment is
monitored by a transit agent
who accompanies the staff of each company and
takes a photo of each procedure.
This photo also serves as proof of where each vehicle was removed and can be claimed by drivers.
According to
Clarín
published
in various notes, speeding is sometimes related to drivers
speeding up to go out to "hunt" cars
and increase the number of carries.
It was even reported that cars were lifted from places with allowed parking or in poorly demarcated areas.
In the City, complaints continue about the mistreatment of vehicles carried by tow trucks and speeding.
Photo: Marcelo Carroll
The metered parking service is operated
by the SEC and STO companies
, which have their contracts expired since 2001. And for at least seven years the Buenos Aires government has tried, through laws that never managed to advance, to
expand it to more neighborhoods in the City.
At the end of last year, four years after a law that could never be implemented because it was the subject of different appeals for protection, and a tender that never advanced, the Buenos Aires Legislature approved a
new metered parking plan for the City of Buenos Aires
.
The main changes will seek to modernize a system that is also obsolete, since it creates the complication of obtaining coins to obtain a ticket.
And although it is not working now due to restrictions and the pandemic, it will be implemented again.
According to the law,
the parking meters will be replaced by virtual means of payment
and the transport service will be put out to tender again.
In addition, the new companies will operate in
three zones.
This month the opening of the tender envelopes is scheduled for the application bid that will be used to pay.
In addition, in the future parking system, the Buenos Aires government will pay a
monthly fee
to companies for the hauling service, regardless of the vehicles they tow, according to information from the City.
Today, in the City
there are 4,000 spaces with metered parking
.
The law approved 9 years ago, and never applied, authorizes to reach 130,000.
But the Government assures that it
will charge a
maximum
in 80,000 places.
These spaces will be in neighborhoods that are now not paying for parking.
And it is planned that different types of rates will be implemented, in order to facilitate circulation.
Thus, there will be
progressive values
, especially in commercial environments and free spaces for residents of those areas.
SC
