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The Livermore Police Department’s traffic unit removed 57 abandoned vehicles from city streets in mid-July during a first-of-its-kind, two-day operation, as confirmed by city and police officials.
Most of the vehicles towed July 10-11 held a registration expired by more than six months and were not operated or driven regularly, LPD spokesperson Azenith Smith said. Some of the vehicles were allegedly filed as planned nonoperation, meaning the vehicle cannot legally be driven, towed, stored or parked on public roads or highways for the entire registration year, as defined on the California DMV website.
Abandoned vehicles are an everyday, complaint-driven problem, Smith added.
“LPD will conduct a similar operation once every quarter in addition to the regular enforcement done by our volunteers and Cadet,” Smith said.
Regulations — including a 72-hour parking limit for vehicles, boats and trailers on public streets — are designed to maintain safe and accessible neighborhoods, city officials wrote in a recent e-newsletter featuring the vehicle clearings.
A vehicle on public streets can be marked as “abandoned” if LPD receives a complaint about it as being abandoned or stored for longer than 72 hours and an LPD representative confirms the state of the vehicle, according to the LPD website.
Prior to marking it as abandoned, the LPD representative inspects it for cobwebs, leaves and debris around the tires, debris on the vehicle, dirt, low tires and missing and or broken vehicle parts, the website states.
“Even if a vehicle is parked in front of the owner’s residence, registered and insured, the vehicle can still be considered abandoned or stored if it’s been parked in excess of 72 hours without being driven,” according to the LPD website.
If determined to be abandoned LPD will place an orange courtesy notice on the vehicle with the applicable Livermore municipal code section.
In most cases, the owner will be given 72 hours to remove the vehicle from the street, however it may be towed and cited if the owner does not comply.
Vehicles with registration expired over six months, or those on planned nonoperation status, may be subject to immediate towing, according to city officials.
LPD participates in a countywide abandoned vehicle abatement program, which is a means for removing abandoned vehicles that create a public nuisance and a health or safety hazard, according to the State of California website.
