Local Leader Determined To Kick Illegally Parked Commercial Vehicles Off Bensonhurst’s Streets

The burden of nighttime parking in Bensonhurst may soon be eased, as community leaders pursue a plan to give commercial vehicles the boot from residential on-street parking spaces.

Community Board 11 Chairperson Bill Guarinello is spearheading an effort to get rid of the commercial vehicles, which take up residential spaces despite city laws meant to prevent them from doing so.

“There seems to be explosion of commercial vehicles,” Guarinello said. “It starts to make the neighborhood look like a parking lot.”

According to the NYC Department of Transportation, commercial vehicles are prohibited from parking on residential streets between the hours of 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. A violation of this rule may result in a $65 ticket for the vehicle-owner.

Guarinello said that a blitz in enforcement of these ticketing policies may help remind commercial drivers to keep their cars parked away from community streets at night.

At Community Board 11’s September meeting, Guarinello cited several “quality of life” problems resurfacing throughout Bensonhurst – small issues that make the community an unwelcome place to live. Crime, graffiti, and commercial vehicle complications sat at the top of the list.

But he admitted that this parking mishap is not a new issue. It’s a problem that Guarinello said he had noticed for years and is finally ready to undertake.

“It’s a safety hazard, a nuisance for the community,” he said.

Guarinello is reaching out to the mayor and the Police Commissioner, and inviting Department of Transportation (DOT) agents to Bensonhurst to make sure that traffic laws are followed.

The DOT classifies a commercial vehicle as a “vehicle designed, maintained, or used primarily for the transportation of property or for the provision of commercial services and bearing commercial plates.”

Guarinello is determined to keep these business automobiles away from residents’ streets. His goal is to start seeing change by the end of October. Right now, he’s just waiting for more feedback from the community, he said.