Local News in Brief : Parking Break for Disabled

The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to amend the city’s preferential parking program to exempt vehicles driven by disabled drivers.

Under the existing ordinance, no one but those who purchase special permits may park on streets limited to residents.

However, City Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky--the father of Los Angeles’ permit parking ordinance--introduced a motion in January that would allow those with state-issued handicapped placards to park in the restricted zones. Yaroslavsky said he was prompted to do so after he read a Times article in December about Alex Weisberg, a disabled man who received a $28 ticket when he parked in a preferential parking district in another city.