Reading Parking Authority announced Thursday morning a limited-time amnesty program to help individuals with outstanding parking tickets pay down their balance due.
Program benefits include removing late fees and up to a 25% reduction in original fine amounts. For example, someone who received $500 in tickets and accrued $500 in late fees since March 2021 could save $625 if they pay in full during the amnesty program. The program deadline is June 10, 2023.
Nathan Matz, Executive Director of the Reading Parking Authority, estimates that 23,000 vehicles are at risk of being towed. With the new amnesty program, Matz hopes to help citizens avoid the inconvenience of booting and towing.
“The RPA board looked at how we can help the community. How we can help people avoid the fear. 23,000 vehicles can be towed today. That’s a very large number, and the board decided to figure out a way to help people avoid that” said Matz.
Matz says a large green “final warning” will be placed on vehicles as extra notification, which will show the total amount of the outstanding fine and offer an additional 15 days to make a payment before further action is taken.
Parking Authority moves to new location
The new Citizen & Customer Services office is located at 430 South 4th Street and is now open to the public.
The move is intended to make accessing services more convenient for the public. Among the most anticipated changes is providing services to citizens and customers at the two-lane drive-thru.
Everyone coming to the new location is encouraged to use the drive-thru located at the rear of the building. Hours are Monday through Friday 8:00am – 4:30pm and Saturday 8:00am – 1:00pm.
