toronto parking ticket

The top 10 spots for parking tickets in Toronto

The worst places for parking tickets in Toronto aren't necessarily where you might think they'd be.

As many drivers will know, this city has some incredibly zealous parking attendants. Between 2008 and 2012 the enforcement officers handed out fines totaling $550 million - $110 million a year. One man, Zulfiqar Khimani, personally ticketed $4 million over that period. It's tough out there for rule-breakers.

Park in Toronto, a website set up by web developer Darek Kowalski aims to shed some light on Toronto's illegal parking blackspots. By mining and processing data released by the city, Kowalski has managed to identify the worst streets and most dangerous addresses to break the rules in Toronto.

"I took the data, 14 million tickets, and I worked with it, analyzed it, rebuilt it, changed it around, and created [Park in Toronto.]" Kowalski says. "This application uses five years worth of data."

It's not supposed to help anyone become a scofflaw, he says. "It's providing info, it's up to the people to decide what they want to do with it. People will still park regardless."

Here are the top 10 worst places to illegally park in Toronto, according to the city's latest information:

10) 225 King Street West (Sun Life Financial) - 11,868 tickets ($178,035)

This stretch of King Street between Simcoe and John is home to Metro Hall, the Princess of Wales Theatre, the Royal Alexandra Theatre, Roy Thompson Hall, and some serious parking ticket action. The exact address is for Sun Life Financial, but it's likely the fines are for this entire stretch, which is also part of a busy transit corridor. (Average fine: $15.00)

9) 2 Cooper Street (LCBO) - 12,006 tickets ($479,880)

Drivers hoping to dash in to the LCBO at Yonge and Lake Shore without displaying a ticket are like limping zebra to the hungry parking enforcement lions. The store has a large parking lot which means plenty of fresh meat. (Average fine: $39.97)

8) 200 Elizabeth Street (University Health Network) - 12,100 tickets ($321,540)

Visiting an ailing friend at Toronto General Hospital is a potentially costly act of kindness if you don't find a proper place for your car. Blocking the EMS entrance is also not a good idea. (Average fine: $26.57)

7) 25 St. Mary Street (Briarlane Apartments) - 12,682 tickets ($212,410)

Visitors to the Briarlane apartment building a few blocks southwest of Yonge and Bloor are clearly doing something wrong. The pay-and-display system is nothing unusual, neither are the parking hours, and there's nothing on the street to suggest why the cops would be so keen. Weird. (Average fine: $16.75)

6) 70 York Street (HSBC Bank Canada) - 14,351 tickets ($495,760)

This address, the southwest corner of TD Centre, covers a number of bank towers around the intersection of King and Bay. I suspect delivery drivers and couriers make up a good portion of these tickets. (Average fine: $34.55)

5) 60 Bloor Street West (GAP clothing) - 14,878 tickets ($537,340)

The GAP store sits on the northeast corner of Bay and Bloor, also home to several major banking institutions. It's also the gateway to Yorkville. The amount of tickets is close to the number recorded at 70 York Street but the total is higher, which suggests more serious or prolonged infractions. (Average fine: $36.12)

4) 25 The West Mall (Sherway Gardens) - 20,231 tickets ($793,680)

Sherway Gardens is Toronto's biggest retail offender and home to some of the city's costliest fines, on average. Chances are if you park illegally or overstay in a space the damage will be at least $40. (Average fine: $39.23)

3) 20 Edward Street (World's Biggest Bookstore) - 31,357 tickets ($137,760)

Though the street outside the World's Biggest Bookstore sees over 31,000 tickets, the fines levied here are generally quite low. 20 Edward Street wouldn't make the cut if this top 10 list were ranked by the value of the yellow slips. Make of that what you will. (Average fine: $4.39)

2) 1750 Finch Avenue East (Seneca College Newnham Campus) - 39,792 tickets ($427,700)

Another case of keen ticketing but low fines makes Seneca College near Finch and the 404 the second worst spot to leave your car without the proper permission in Toronto. Be comforted, students: the average cost is pretty low. (Average fine: $10.74)

1) 2075 Bayview Avenue (Sunnybrook Hospital) - 49,888 tickets ($342,450)

It's an absolutely bonanza up at Sunnybrook. 2075 Bayview got 10,000 more tickets than its nearest competitor to take the title of worst address to park in Toronto. That said, the total amount collected here is remarkably low, so that's something. (Average fine: $6.86)

Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.

Image: Steve M/blogTO Flickr pool.


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