We asked, you answered: Should you be allowed to save your parking spot after a snowstorm?

We asked yinz, youse, and everyone in between about post-snowstorm parking etiquette in Pennsylvania.

It’s been several weeks since Pennsylvania was hit with the first big statewide snowstorm this winter, and in some neighborhoods around the state, parking is still an issue. 

Despite the fact that the practice is subject to fines in some cities and municipalities, like Philadelphia, residents are “saving” the spot they worked hard to dig out with lawnchairs, trash cans, and other items. (Years ago, when I lived in Philadelphia’s Manayunk neighborhood, a neighbor saved a post-snowstorm parking spot with an old toilet and an empty beer keg—peak Philly stuff.)

The Wall Street Journal covered the issue in Pittsburgh, leading to, presumably, the first instance of the word ‘jagoff’ appearing in the Journal.

Given that we could see another snowstorm (or, shudder to think, two) before spring arrives, we asked readers of The Keystone newsletter (subscribe here):

Should you be allowed to save your parking spot after a snowstorm?

Here’s what they had to say (answers have been edited for length and clarity):

“Yes!! I am too old to either shovel more than one space or walk blocks home in negative wind chills. Saving the space you shoveled should absolutely be legal.”

— Kathy K., Bethlehem

“Saving a spot with a parking chair after a snowstorm makes sense. You’ve spent hours digging the space out, after all. Pittsburgh has good company in following the practice: Chicago and Boston, for starters.”

— Elise MacDonald, Pittsburgh

“Yes. An individual should be allowed to ‘reserve’ the parking space he or she has created by removing the snow in that area. However, the space should be directly in front of the individual’s dwelling or in its proximity if the dwelling in question includes several residential dwellings as in a duplex or apartment complex. Such a reservation should be of limited time. Perhaps 48 hours.”

— David D., Wilkes-Barre

“Absolutely you should be able to. At any other time of the year, I would say it’s public parking, yet if someone spends time and potentially risks backache, after shoveling a spot out, I wouldn’t have the audacity to park in that space.”

— Shalonda J., Franklin County

“Definitely, after taking time and energy to dig out your parking spot, you should be able to save it. All the city, borough, etc. does (sometimes) is clear the street and usually plows you in.” 

— Anita, Huntingdon

“Yes. If you dig out a spot, it should be yours to use. If someone steals your space, they are a real jagoff.”

— Mike Crossey, Pittsburgh

“Absolutely, I am 70 and worked so hard to get my car out. Definitely a trash can there to save my spot. I respect it. People deserve their spot if they shovel it out!”

— Lori, Northwest Philadelphia

“Yes, I believe you should be able to keep the spot you worked so long and hard to clear. Your neighbor, who did not come out and help at all with shoveling, should not have access to the spout you worked so hard for. I grew up on a single lane minor street that waited days sometimes for a snow plow, so I know what it’s like.”

— Mary Brintzenhoff, Coopersburg

“No chair needed. Coming from the Pittsburgh suburb that has had police collect parking chairs as far back as 1994, one just needs to dig out enough to get in and out of the spot without making it so attractive that a chair is needed. This method requires a lot less shoveling than clearing a space down to the pavement. However, it also requires a bit of skill controlling your vehicle in the snow, especially when parking on a hill.”

— Tim, Dormont

“Yes, you certainly should. We don’t have a driveway and my husband was out there for hours and hours shoveling out two spots to perfection, expensive rock salt included. I realize we don’t ‘own’ the street spots, however, they are directly in front of our home. We don’t put anything there to save them because people frown upon that but the day after he did all that work, a person from down the street parked there for seven hours. I was furious that someone would be so rude and unkind.”

— Eileen, Dunmore

“I do not understand the ‘savesies.’ If I dig out a spot and my neighbor then parked in it, that means their car is out, thus they have also dug out a spot. Two cars = two spots. The only thing I get mad about is when two spots have been dug out and then someone parks in the middle! There’s 2 clearly defined spots! Why?!”

— Nicole Lemanski-Allman, Fairmount/Philadelphia

“Yes, you should be allowed to save your parking space in front of your home if you cleaned it for that purpose. I live in a smaller neighborhood and everyone seems to respect the idea of having a spot in front of your house for your car.”

— MT, Olyphant

“No. Streets belong to us all! If you want a garage, rent one.”

— Tom Cutter, Langhorne

“I do think one should be able to save a space, especially if they have no driveway or other option. If I worked to clear a space, I wouldn’t want someone else parking there. 

— Sandy, Athens

“It is illegal to put anything in shoveled out parking spaces except a vehicle. It would be nice to be able to but it is against the law.”

— KP, Carlisle