Is Street Cleaning About Raking Leaves or Raking in the Dough?
Is street cleaning more effective at cleaning the street or making money for cities? And how much do urban drivers on average pay per year in street cleaning tickets? Our YoGov Wizards team did a bit of digging to help answer these questions, and we were surprised!
Raking Leaves or Raking in the Dough?
The above question was posed by Dan in this WBEZ article looking at street sweeping costs and revenue in Chicago. In that in-depth article, it found that street cleaning especially served a purpose in colder climates were there is a great risk for freezing and potholes developing due to debris blockage. This is true. Debris does accumulate on city streets making street cleaning an important public service.
But important enough to justify the high street cleaning ticket prices? The fact is this: Parking and street cleaning tickets is a revenue generator for cities.
In 2013, Chicago took in $15 million from parking ticket revenue. Street cleaning itself cost the city...
