Alternate-Side Parking Enforcement Information

Alternate-Side Parking Enforcement – Skokie Police Department

 In order to keep Skokie streets safe and passable for emergency vehicles and all vehicular traffic, the Village institutes the alternate-side parking program from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. for two days after a snowfall of two inches or more. When alternate-side parking is in effect, the Skokie Police Department automatically begins enforcement of the parking regulations. This enforcement follows the same priority that the Public Works snow plows follow which are arterial streets, multi-family areas, feeder streets and then residential streets. The Police Department frequently receives calls from residents who are concerned about cars on their block that are in violation, thus preventing snow plows from effectively clearing snow from the entire street. When these calls are received, if enforcement has not yet occurred on the block in question, an officer will not be dispatched since they are currently enforcing other priority streets and they will eventually conduct enforcement on the street in question. If enforcement has already occurred on the block and there is a new violation, an officer will be dispatched to conduct enforcement. After a snowfall that triggers alternate side parking, there is traditionally an increase in calls for service as well due to increased traffic crashes and citizens needing assistance. The increase in calls also has an impact on how quickly the Police Department can conduct enforcement on all Village streets. The goal of the Village and the Police Department is to gain voluntary compliance and speed the process of snow removal from the Village streets.  

 The Village's goal with alternate-side parking is to have 100 percent compliance throughout the community, which is why there are an abundance of methods that residents can use to learn whether parking restrictions are in effect after a storm. Residents can check the home page of the website in the early morning, call the Skokie Snow Hotline at 847/675-SNOW (7669) for a recorded message, subscribe to receive a Smart911 text alert, watch for a special edition of SkokieNews e-newsletter or listen to the siren that airs throughout the community at 7 a.m. on days when alternate-side parking is in effect. The Village offers these many communications options so that every resident can easily find the information and move their vehicle to comply, avoiding a costly citation.