How To Avoid Getting Towed During Snow Emergencies

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Jeremiah Williamson parked his car Thursday outside his home in Minneapolis, but it wasn't there when he woke up.

"I was headed to work and 'Where is my car?'" he said.

He wasn't alone.

It was an hour and-a-half wait to get to the front of the line at the Minneapolis Impound Lot for drivers who had their cars towed during the snow emergency.

"We have about a four inch [of snow] threshold plus or minus that we look at," said Mike Kennedy, the Minneapolis Public Works director of transportation. "If we get more than four [inches], it's an easy kind of thing."

The city engineer officially declares the snow emergencies in Minneapolis. The city's last snow emergency declared, on Dec. 17, resulted in 6,705 vehicles ticketed, and 1,353 vehicles towed.

"If you live in Minneapolis and it snows, it's also your responsibility to pay attention and to watch for it," Kennedy said.

Both Minneapolis and St. Paul allow residents to sign up for email and text alerts on up-to-date snow emergency information. The City of St. Paul also has an app.

"It used to just be billboards and people would have to know, but know we make 100,000 telephone calls, we send 122,000 emails," Kennedy said.

Williamson, the man who made the trip to the impound lot, says he won't make the mistake again.

"This is going to cost me $138 and a speech from my father," he said.

If you do get towed, you have to pay the cost of the tow, in addition to the ticket fee. There's still one more day of a snow emergency in effect for Minneapolis Friday, when the odd side of the streets will be plowed.