Illegal trucks towed, fined/45th removes stored semis from park area

Illegal trucks towed, fined/45th removes stored semis from park area
Photo courtesy Victor DiPierro

Aggressive NYPD parking enforcement should relieve Bruckner Boulevard of illegally stored commercial vehicles.

A stretch of Bruckner Boulevard between Middletown Road and Wilkinson Avenue that runs parallel to Pelham Bay Park has become a virtual truck stop for 18-wheelers and other oversized vehicles recently, according sources.

The 45th Precinct has mounted an aggressive tow, boot and ticket operation for the illegally parked trucks to rectify the situation, said the precinct commanding officer, Deputy Inspector Danielle Raia.

Raia said that Councilman James Vacca told her he had received complaints, and that the precinct secured a heavy-duty tow truck for an operation on Saturday, February 11.

A second action was carried out on Sunday, February 19, and another is being planned, she said.

“We are going to keep doing it until they get the message,” said Raia, adding “We are going to do it as many times as we have to.”

A total of 14 summonses were issued to 12 different vehicles for Commercial Overnight Parking, with two tractor trailer trucks towed to a pound on February 11, according to information supplied by Vacca’s office.

Additionally, a white pickup truck with Delaware plates and tractor-trailer with New York plates had boots applied that same day.

On February 19, according to Raia, six more summonses were issued, five more vehicles were booted and one bus was towed.

The councilman said that he has witnessed the illegal parking alongside Pelham Bay Park for some time, but said that the severity has increased and he recently counted nine trucks, including flat bed trucks with cars on them.

“We are not a truck stop here,” said Vacca, adding that he felt the towing is “going to send a message because they are going to wake up in the morning and not find their vehicle.”

The councilman said the Bruckner service road, along with part of Cross Bronx Expressway Service Road near St. Raymond Cemetery, have had this problem on and off for years.

Based on his experience, the councilman said that commercial vehicles are stored on local streets for a variety of reasons, including owners who don’t want to pay to store their vehicles in manufacturing areas.

Local activist Victor DePierro said that he passes the service road almost daily when he takes his son to school in New Rochelle, and that the problem is growing.

He has seen up to ten trucks parked next to the park on Bruckner Boulevard at once, he said.

“This is a residential community,” said DePierro, who said he brought the matter to the councilman’s attention.

“It just gives you the perception that this is becoming a truck stop,” said DePierro, who added that he has questions as to the cargo and the whereabouts of the drivers.

Reach Reporter Patrick Rocchio at (718) 260–4597. E-mail him at procchio@cnglocal.com. Follow him on Twitter @patrickfrocchio.