San Francisco Shuts Down Viral Parking Enforcement Tracker Within Four Hours of Launch

San Francisco city officials swiftly disabled a new web application, "Find My Parking Cops," within four hours of its launch, which allowed users to track parking enforcement officers in near real-time. Created by software engineer Riley Walz, the app utilized publicly available data from the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) to map citation issuance and featured a controversial leaderboard ranking officers by fines collected. The rapid shutdown occurred after the city altered its public data feed, citing concerns for employee safety and operational integrity. Parnell

The "Find My Parking Cops" app mimicked Apple's "Find My Friends" interface, visually displaying where parking tickets were being issued across the city. A key feature, described by users as a "scoreboard," highlighted officers who had issued the most fines, with one officer reportedly accumulating over $15,000 in citations before the app ceased functioning. Walz developed the tool by reverse-engineering the city's parking ticket system, making enforcement patterns transparent to the public.

The SFMTA confirmed it changed its website to restrict access to the data feed that powered the application. SFMTA spokesperson Erica Kato stated, "Citations are a tool to ensure compliance with parking laws, which help keep our streets safe and use our limited curb space efficiently and fairly." She added that while the agency welcomes creative uses of technology, they must ensure employees can perform their duties safely and without disruption.

The app's brief existence sparked considerable discussion online, with many praising Walz for his ingenuity in helping residents avoid tickets. Reflecting this sentiment, one user, Sam, tweeted, > "I love the parking ticket app (especially the scoreboard lmao) but the general hate of parking police is midwittery. Do you realize how bad SF would suck if anyone could park as long as they wanted without retribution?" This highlights the mixed public perception of parking enforcement and the app's utility.

The incident underscores the ongoing tension between public access to data, technological innovation, and city regulatory control in San Francisco. While the app offered a novel way for drivers to navigate the city's notorious parking challenges, the SFMTA prioritized the safety of its personnel and the consistent enforcement of parking regulations. Walz, known for other "stunty" websites, expressed that the city moved with "lightning speed" to block his data access.