Boston Transportation Department

My review is for the Ruthless, Calculating, and Sad ticket officers, who patrol and dispense orange violation tickets to poor Bostonians and God forbid guests of Boston who didn’t know better. It’s a nice touch to welcome foreigners to a city with few parking meters and expensive parking spaces and give them their very own Boston orange tickets. Today my opinion of them has reached a new low. This is my second ticket. The first ticket happened a few years ago I went into the financial district on a weekend with barely any cars to quickly stop next to an ATM to grab money. It took less than two minutes and someone in a Boston Twinkie Department van stopped by, sorry I meant to say Boston Transportation Department. It’s not my fault, the van was Twinkie shaped. One of our lovely BTD officers with a soulless expression has just wrapped up a ticket. I explained I was just going to the ATM. The officer responded with «Here’s your ticket.» and handed over to me with the same soulless expression. Should I say thanks? This time I was attending a baby class at a center for pregnancy with my wife and things took longer than expected so I went back to feed the meter. When I returned to the center a discussion about baby gear still took a bit longer than expected and I found my second orange ticket. The meter must have just expired.
BTD officers must have nothing better to do than to count every meter minute I’m surprised they don’t count seconds and milliseconds. These officers are ruthless, even if your meter runs out for less than five minutes they may have already done their work. Every time I drive into Boston I waste gas, time in traffic, time finding parking space, quarters feeding meters, and stress out worrying that if I don’t do plan everything perfectly I’m going to collect yet another beautiful orange ticket. In order to avoid a ticket I will need to be held hostage by putting in extra quarters well beyond my staying time so I can avoid a ticket and subsidize the next motorist. Either way BTD aka Boston Tax Department (couldn’t resist) gets their money. Either they get their $ 25 from my constant trips and constant stream of quarter feeding or via an unfortunate turn of events and get another parking ticket.
Boston must really need the money for BTD officers to be this thorough at finding parking violations. I’m glad we don’t have tons of cops and cameras at stop signs to make sure we fully stop and on roads to make sure our car speed is within limit. Thankfully, the Boston Police prioritize going after real criminals or perhaps it is under BTD jurisdiction to do that and that they found it within their hearts to spare Boston from that fate (I doubt this). If the city has budgetary problems maybe the leadership can look at themselves before shaking motorist for miniscule parking violation. I will think twice next time about being a good citizen in Boston. When I have a piece of trash in my hand it will either go on the street or in the trash bin 20 feet away. Extra money will either be donated to the good city of Boston or elsewhere. When city officials and employees appeal to me for help my ears will either be open or closed. I will remember my treatment at the hands of BTD and say the City of Boston can go funk themselves.
Signed,
Not Another Ticket Bostonian

The btd has been very helpful to me in the past… idiots always park in front of my driveway… and the abuse they have to listen to when they get a ticket amazes me… people hate to admit they are wrong when they get a ticket and take it out on these poor workers… what ever these workers get paid is not enuf. god bless them

We desperately need some stop lines painted in front the the firehouse at 560 Huntington Ave, Boston. It’s a huge safety hazard. Called the past few years, nothing has been done about it yet. I’ll repost when job is completed, calling again today.

Called to get info on a ticket today, they gave me alot of bs and told me to go to city hall I had 5 days for a walk in and on the spot appeal!!! I knew better!!! And the guy who answered the phone had no idea what he was talking about! Sounded like he smoked 100 cigarettes!

Btd traffic enforcement officers & tow truck drivers are very helpful with assuring parking for the disabled. Know hp placard know parking!
They also educate the public by explaining the rules and regulations posted!
And we the public need to respect them for creating parking spaces when and where needed. Learn from «Your» mistakes… and courtesy creates change… Together we can eliminate road rage, accidents and sitting in traffic for long periods of time.

The folks in the office down town are quite nice, but making every single person in the city who wants a moving permit sure around while they chat is Not OK.

i met this meter maid who was so helpful. i was in the south end and was lost one day. i was meeting my boy toy and was real late. i ran into this hunk of a meter maid. big brown eyes and slicked back hair. he looked like a greek god and i asked him where the chandler inn was. let me tell you he gave me front door service. i wish it was back door service but thats another day. thank you so booster i hope to see ya

I wont go on and on about these disgrace to human beings. Absolutely immoral and crooked they are like rats searching for a meal. The feeling i get when i see one of their vans or the site of them walking up the street cackling like hyenas at the misery they cause day in and day out. Meanwhile they obstruct traffic laws vans parked at hydrants and blocking crosswalks. If these people represent our enforcers of traffic violations there is something rotting in the underbelly of the city of Boston. Like roaches scampering about they terrorize the city writing false violations some thing needs to be done. I only wish there was some thing more than writing a review.

In addition to some insanely horrible meter maid experiences (like the time I got a double parking ticket while I was IN my car, idling as I spoke with the owner of Naha’s shoes) the scene at City Hall is a joke.
Just last week I was at City Hall to get a moving permit and resident sticker. One person sells the actual cardboard signs (accepting checks only) and then marches you down the hall to get the actually permit piece of paper (for cash or check). Then you have to leave the 7^th floor for the Basement where you get your resident sticker. But wait! If you don’t have a check for the signs, that’s ok because you can just mail it in later, but you HAVE to pay the permit that day. The ATM is conveniently located on the 1^st floor, so once you learn this, you have to trek there and back. Once you make it to the basement, you’ll find out that you need to have already changed your auto registration address, but I hadn’t, so I got handed a phone number to call. Fifteen minutes later (on hold because my call is «important» to them) I asked the person at the counter if they could just change it for me online at
. They told me they couldn’t because it would take 24-​hours to update. In front of her, on my iPhone (god love it) I updated it myself and lo and behold– it was instantly updated.
Um ok.
I’d like to introduce email. And the internet! And the concept of creating a moving center to mange all things «moving» related. Hell-​oooo people?! It’s 2010.
I am so glad to see where all my taxes are going.
PS. City Hall validates for the local parking garage but you won’t learn that until you go to pay. And then it’s too late. I think a piece of my soul died last week.

I am going to have to agree with every single thing David d. said about the BTD. BTD meter maids are TRASHY and abusive. I have witnessed a BTD meter maid screaming at someone because he paused his car in front of a house for 20 seconds. She could have just told him to move, but instead she decided to be a harpy about it and yell loud enough to wake the dead.
And also, why is it that all BTD meter maids are fat (Dunkin Donuts for sure) and they smoke NONSTOP? I suppose I might engage in self-​destructive habits if I had their job… kill myself off quickly to get out of working. I pity the person who gets stuck walking behind a pack of them. 3 women will easily take up the whole sidewalk width (see my comment on their extreme girth) and the chain smoking will make you ill.
And if you are ever unfortunate enough to get a ticket, I encourage you to appeal it. This is because it is a well-​documented fact that the BTD meter maids are d-​bags on a power trip who will issue tickets that are not technically deserved.
I’m moving out of Boston in 6 months and I will miss the BTD the least out of everything. Bastards.

Have you ever been walking down a street in the city, and next thing you know, a coven or witches pulls up next to you in a white van, smoking an entire carton of cigarettes, each with their own large Dunkin Donuts iced coffee in one hand, and a booklet in the other? Those are the meter maids, and they are on the prowl. They drive around all over the city and hunt (and smoke newports, drink iced coffee, and take lunch breaks longer than some work days).
If you see one without a Dunkin Donut’s cup in her hand, it’s probz bkuz she’s writing a $ 75 ticket for you, bkuz your parking space is within 20 feet of an intersection.
BTD is their acronym of choice, but I prefer the one for C U Next Tuesday.