Last modified: Friday, October 26, 2007 1:14 AM EDT City parking ban end still alive BY GEORGE W. RHODES SUN CHRONICLE STAFF ATTLEBORO - While an effort to eliminate the city's four-month winter parking ban, or at least lessen its restrictions, has been rejected by the traffic study commission and the mayor, some city councilors appear warm to the idea, and may try to change the ordinance that forces residents to park off street every night from December through March. The council's transportation and traffic committee voted this week to send the matter to the full council for debate because of the divided opinion. City officials claim the ban is crucial to ensure roads are kept clear of snow and ice, especially when there are surprise storms or there's unexpected formation of "black ice." However, Ward 1 Councilor Jim Hanley describes the ban as "the medieval blanket method of keeping people off the street for a third of the year." Hanley argues that modern weather forecasting technology and communication should enable the city to reduce restrictions if not eliminate them completely. Temporary bans could be imposed during bad weather so residents pressed for parking can use the street during the majority of time when weather is not bad. Under current law, motorists must remove their vehicles from the street every night from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. between Dec. 1 and March 31 or face a $10 fine for each violation. Council Vice President Robert Schoch agrees that changes could work. "The more I think about this, the more strongly I feel we need to modify the way we do things," he said. "It's getting harder and harder to park." He argues that congested cities such as Boston and Brookline handle snow and ice removal without a winter-long ban. But Councilor Peter Blais said the parking problem isn't as bad as presented. Residents can handle the ban, he said. The lack of a ban would make it tougher to clean the streets, Blais said. "If you drive through the East Side, you'll see people have found ingenious ways to get their cars off the street," he said. "If we change this now, it will become much more difficult to do a good job (plowing and sanding). Not only would it be harder to plow, but it would likely cost more, because streets would need to be done again where cars were parked, he said. "In my mind, your plowing budget would go up 20 percent if it went up a nickel," Blais said. GEORGE W. RHODES can be reached at 508-236-0432 or at grhodes@thesunchronicle.com.