NEXT L.A. : L.A. Parking Officers Find Bikes Are Just the Ticket

They are public enemy No. 1 for weary Los Angeles drivers, contributing to parking hell in crowded sections of L.A.

They are the parking enforcement officers.

But with a new program that changes the officers’ mode of transportation from car to bicycle, the city of Los Angeles hopes to change that image and do some environmental good at the same time.

“We are not bloodsucking, spineless jerks,” said Officer Glenn Yee as he pedaled the busy streets off north Fairfax Avenue and La Cienega Boulevard--parking ticket heaven. “Now people ask us how they can get a job like ours.”

The bike detail, launched in August, is part of a yearlong pilot program to encourage bicycle use, increase officer mobility and community contact and improve air quality.

Although Los Angeles is not leading the charge in environmentally conscious and people-friendly parking enforcement--Santa Monica, Pasadena and West Hollywood also field bike officers--the city does boast the largest contingent, with 10 parking officers on the street at any given time.

The bike patrol, said Yee, has increased flexibility, allowing officers to ride on the sidewalk and cross intersections freely. They can also stop on a dime without blocking traffic.

Truck delivery driver Mario Lopez is thankful for that. “I drive a lot and the [parking enforcement] cars are always in the way. They are always in a space where I need to park,” said Lopez, who says he always carries quarters in his pocket to feed the meters.

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Yee says the new casual look of shorts, polo shirt and a bike is less intimidating to people than the blue-gray uniform and official cap officers wear when they step out of a parking enforcement vehicle.

But the sight of an approaching parking officer still makes mature adults act strangely. On a recent afternoon ride along La Cienega, Yee watched drivers rush out of trendy art galleries and European furniture shops to frantically stuff coins in the meter.

If they are quick enough, Yee said, he is usually forgiving.

“Well, we try to talk to some of the store owners and customers about finding parking spaces,” said Yee, a self-described bike enthusiast. “We try to give people a break.”

One customer was not so lucky.

“My day started off with a ticket for passing a red light,” said Tim Biggins, a casting director who got a second ticket, written by Yee, for an expired meter. “What can you do about it? It’s life in Los Angeles.”