Words and phrases, when used in this ordinance, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in the Vehicle Code of Pennsylvania,[1] as now in force or as may hereafter be amended, enacted or reenacted, except in those instances where the context clearly indicates a different meaning.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 101 et seq.
When signs are erected lawfully, giving notice thereof, no person shall park a vehicle at any time upon any of the streets or parts of streets designated as prohibited parking areas by this chapter or by temporary regulations in conformity with Articles I and II of this chapter.
When signs are erected lawfully, giving notice thereof, no person shall park a vehicle longer than the time permitted upon any streets or parts of streets designated as limited parking areas by this chapter or by temporary regulations in conformity with Articles I and II of this chapter.
No person shall park a vehicle or permit it to stand; whether attended or unattended, upon a street or highway or in any of the places delineated in Sections 3353 and 3354 of the Pennsylvania Motor Vehicle Code.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 75 Pa.C.S.A. §§ 3353 and 3354.
No person, other than the property owner or his/her designee, shall park a vehicle, at any time, in front of, or in such a position as to block the entrance to or to deny access or exit by a vehicle from a public or private driveway or garage. Any vehicle parked within five feet of any corner at the intersection of the driveway and the public thoroughfare of the public or private garage or driveway shall be in violation of this section.
No vehicle shall stand on any street or sidewalk for the purpose of greasing or repair work except in case of emergency repairs.
No vehicle shall be stored upon any street. As used herein, "stored" means the parking of a vehicle in one place upon any street continuously for over 72 hours.
No person shall park or leave on the streets, highways, private property or public property owned by the Township any of the following:
A. 
Mechanically inoperable vehicles.
B. 
Vehicles without current, valid registration plates.
C. 
Vehicles without current, valid inspection stickers.
D. 
Vehicles without current, valid emission stickers, unless the vehicle is exempt from state emission inspections.
The provisions of § 180-13 shall not apply to new and used car dealers, auto service stations, auto repair garages, junkyards or other lawful uses who shall park or display new or used motor vehicles on private land zoned for this purpose.
No person shall park tractors, tractor trailers, dump trucks, packer trucks (garbage), recreational vehicles, buses and any other vehicle over 20 feet long on any street between 9:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. of any day except when temporary permission is granted by the Police Department for cause. This section shall not be construed so as to apply to passenger automobiles or construction vehicles currently performing Township-approved projects.
A. 
The owner or person in charge of any motor vehicle shall not permit it to stand unattended on any street, private driveway, public or private parking lot, used or new car sales lot or any other unattended open space which is readily accessible to any person without having locked the ignition of such motor vehicle and removed the ignition key from its lock.
B. 
Any police officer who finds a motor vehicle left in the condition set forth in Subsection A hereof may immediately lock such vehicle's ignition, remove the key from the lock, and secure same at the Palmer Police Department Station. The police officer shall leave notice of any violation found in a conspicuous place on such vehicle, which notice shall also state where the ignition key has been taken and held.
C. 
The registered owner of a vehicle found in violation of this article shall be prima facie responsible for such violation.
A. 
Any resident of the Township, after acquiring a handicapped or disabled veteran's license plate or a handicapped parking placard from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, may make application to the Township for a handicapped parking space/permit.
B. 
Requests for the application shall be made through the Township Traffic Committee, and the completed application shall be returned to the Municipal Building, along with a check in the amount as specified in the fee schedule of the Township, made payable to the Township. Such funds shall be used to cover the costs of processing each application along with the costs of materials and labor involved in the installation of any approved signs. Such application fee is nonrefundable, except upon waiver of the fee by the Board of Supervisors, as provided below.
C. 
The Traffic Committee shall review the application for completeness and will inspect the area of the proposed handicapped parking space in order to determine what impact the placing of a sign would have on the flow of traffic or safety in the area.
D. 
No more than one application per household shall be accepted.
E. 
Handicapped parking spaces reserved for a resident under this section shall be for the sole use of the resident whose application has been granted by the Township. The Township shall place a sign indicating that the space is reserved for the handicapped resident, that no parking by others is permitted in that space and that any unauthorized person parking in that space shall be subject to a fine.
A. 
No person shall park, stand or leave in any zone designated as a tow-away zone any vehicle or trailer, whether attended or unattended. Any motor vehicle as defined by the Pennsylvania Motor Vehicle Code[1] shall be towed without further notice to the owner.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 101 et seq.
B. 
Any person violating this section shall have his/her vehicle towed and pay a fine, towing and storage fees.
A. 
No person shall park, stand or leave in any zone designated as a fire lane or zone any vehicle or trailer, whether attended or unattended. All fire lanes or zones are designated as immediate tow-away zones, with no further notice required.
B. 
The area within 15 feet of a fire hydrant will be considered a fire lane or tow-away zone.
C. 
Any person violating this section shall pay a fine, towing and storage fees.
A. 
No person shall park or leave unattended a vehicle on private property without the consent of the owner or other person in control or possession of the property except in the case of emergency or disablement of the vehicle, in which case the operator shall attempt to notify the owner of said property and arrange for the removal of the vehicle as soon as possible.
B. 
The provisions of Subsection A shall not apply to private parking lots unless such lots are posted to notify the public of any parking restrictions and the operator of the vehicle violates such posted restrictions. For the purposes of this section, "private parking lot" means a lot open to the pubic or used for parking without charge or a parking lot used for parking with charge. Posting shall be in accordance with Pennsylvania Title 67, Transportation, and Pennsylvania Title 75, Vehicle Code.
A. 
No person shall abandon a vehicle on public or private property without the express or implied consent of the owner or the person in lawful possession or control of the property.
B. 
Property owner may remove the vehicle. The owner or other person in charge or in possession of any property on which a vehicle is parked or left unattended in violation of the provisions of Subsection A may remove or have removed the vehicle at the reasonable expense of the owner of the vehicle.
C. 
For the purposes of this section, a vehicle (other than a pedalcycle) shall be presumed to be abandoned under any of the following circumstances, but the presumption is rebuttable by a preponderance of the evidence:
(1) 
The vehicle is physically inoperable and is left unattended on public or private property for more than 48 hours.
(2) 
The vehicle has remained illegally on public or private property for more than 48 hours without the consent of the owner of the property.
(3) 
The vehicle is on public or private property and does not bear a valid registration plate, a valid certificate of inspection, and an ascertainable vehicle identification number.
D. 
Before the owner of any property removes an abandoned vehicle from his property, he shall obtain a copy of Pennsylvania Department of Transportation form MV-952, Police Request for Removal of Abandoned Vehicle.
No person shall park a motor vehicle upon any street or alley in Palmer Township for any of the following purposes:
A. 
Displaying the same for sale.
B. 
Visually obscuring any vehicle with any tarp, cover, blanket or other material which hinders or prevents visual inspection of the vehicle.
No person shall park a vehicle facing the wrong way so as to face traffic on the adjacent lane.
No person shall park any unhitched trailer, to include, but not be limited to, boats, campers, haulers, farm implements, construction, landscaping, animal, reefers, freight, wood chippers, etc., upon any public street, roadway, highway or other thoroughfare in the Township. This does not apply to active work sites or construction zones approved by the Township.
Parking on snow emergency routes when a snow emergency has been declared or parking so as to block snow removal equipment on any street, roadway, highway or alley shall be prohibited.
Park any unlicensed minibike, motorcycle, snowmobile, air-cushion vehicle or motor vehicle upon any public road or public place, or to park any licensed or unlicensed minibike, motorcycle, snowmobile, air cushion vehicle or motor vehicle without the permission of the real property owner upon any portion of public real property or private real property of another which is posted as prohibiting such operation, or which is grassed, covered with growing things of value or not otherwise designed to reasonably accommodate the type of vehicle in question.
No person shall park at a handicapped designated spot properly signed on public or private property without the proper placard or registration plate authorizing them to do so.
No person shall park at, in or on the following places:
A. 
On a sidewalk, including a portion of which is part of the apron of a driveway.
B. 
Within 15 feet of an intersection.
C. 
In an intersection.
D. 
Within 20 feet of a crosswalk or on a crosswalk.
E. 
On any bridge, overpass or other similarly elevated roadway.
F. 
Within 50 feet of any railroad tracks or on railroad tracks.
G. 
Within 30 feet of a stop sign, yield sign or traffic control device.
H. 
Within 15 feet of a fire hydrant.
I. 
Within 20 feet of the driveway or entrance way of a firehouse or fire station.
J. 
Any roadway, street, alley or public parking area by an RV (recreational vehicle).
K. 
Any area which has been deemed temporary no parking by Township authorization.
L. 
Official signs prohibit.
M. 
Double parking.
If any sentence, clause, section or part of this ordinance is for any reason found to be unconstitutional, illegal or invalid, such unconstitutionality, illegality or invalidity shall not affect or impair any of the remaining provisions, sentences, sections, clauses or parts of this ordinance. It is hereby declared as the intent of the Supervisors of Palmer Township that this ordinance would have been adopted had such unconstitutional, illegal or invalid sentence, clause, section or part thereof not been included herein.
A. 
Any person or persons, firm or corporation violating any of the provisions of this ordinance for which no specific penalty is provided shall, upon conviction before any Justice of the Peace of said Township in a summary proceeding, be liable to and shall pay a fine or penalty of not more than $600, plus costs for every violation, for the use of the Township, and upon default in the payment of such fine or penalty, any person so convicted may be committed to the county jail for not more than five days.
B. 
Each day of violation of the particular code or ordinance applicable shall be considered a separate offense, for which the fines and penalties stated herein may be imposed on a daily basis.
A. 
The Palmer Township Board of Supervisors shall set the fines for parking tickets in violation of the provisions of the parking ordinance at minimum annually with the schedule of fees and may periodically review and approve adjustments to same throughout the calendar year.
B. 
The Palmer Township Board of Supervisors authorizes the Palmer Township Police Department's police officers to issue parking tickets in lieu of citations at the discretion of the police officer. Each day of violation of the particular code or applicable ordinance shall be considered a separate offense, for which the fines and penalties stated herein may be imposed on a daily basis.