[media-credit name=’LUKAS KEAPPROTH/Herald photo’ align=’alignright’ width=’336′][/media-credit]

While visiting friends last winter, Winona State student Adam Berrier was ticketed for not abiding by Madison’s alternate parking rules, but he was not the only one.

“There were cars parked on both sides of the street,” Berrier said. “And all of us had parking tickets the next morning.”

Berrier works as a parking enforcer on the Winona State campus, which shares identical alternate side parking rules.

According to the City of Madison winter web portal, alternate side parking rules require vehicles to park on the side of the street with even numbered addresses on even numbered days and on the side of the street with odd numbered addresses on odd numbered days from 1 a.m. to 7 a.m., seven days a week from Nov. 15 to March 15.

Berrier was parked on Charter Street, which had a total of 343 tickets issued. He said he was not aware alternate parking was enforced in Madison.

“Once I got the ticket I was looking for signs,” Berrier said. “But I didn’t find anything.”

Berrier was one of the recipients of the 17,911 $20 alternate-side parking tickets issued last winter, with Orchard Street topping the list at 676, followed closely behind by Brooks Street at 636, according to the Madison Police Department.

Streets Division spokesperson George Dreckmann said many efforts have been made to help inform students about the city’s winter parking policies.

“In early November, flyers were put on windshields of downtown’s busiest streets as well as handed out with student bus passes,” Dreckmann said.

Dreckmann added the information about alternate side parking was posted at city libraries, given to residential street parking permit holders, and radio ads were aired during Badger sporting events.

“You have got to check your media outlets,” Ald. Robbie Webber, District 5, said.

The University of Wisconsin is supposed to inform students of snow emergencies but not the rules for alternate side parking, UW spokesperson John Lucas said.

“Every effort is made to make information accessible to students,” Lucas said. “Information on alternate side parking is not our responsibility.”

The city of Madison is now offering a text message alert similar to WiscAlerts for people to sign up for text notifications to let them know to move their cars in declared snow emergencies.

“If you own a car it is your responsibility to park it somewhere legally,” Webber said. “Plan in advance; don’t wait until it snows 10 inches.”

Webber said occasional drivers who are downtown parkers could find parking off the street outside of the downtown area and commute to their car via bus.

Once a snow emergency has been declared, Webber said, all city parking ramps are free of charge from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m.

Webber said it is important to move your car when a snow emergency is in effect, especially now that parking fines for downtown are $60 during snow emergencies.

“A car parked on the street during a snow emergency blocks a huge chunk of the street,” Webber said. “It makes it difficult or sometimes impossible for emergency and city vehicles to drive through.”

The City of Madison’s winter weather portal states a snow emergency is declared whenever it becomes necessary to plow streets and remains in effect for 48 hours after it is declared.

City officials strongly advise downtown parkers to check the city of Madison website, www.cityofmadison.com/residents/winter, to understand each area’s parking zone rules.