D.C. is towing cars with tons of unpaid tickets under new program

Repeat traffic offenders with thousands of dollars in unpaid tickets are having their cars towed under a new D.C. pilot program.

Why it matters: It's a step toward safer streets, per officials — people with several violations and outstanding fines are often riskier drivers , D.C. Vision Zero director Charlie Willson told WTOP.

The big picture: D.C. saw a 16-year high in traffic deaths last year, as the city struggles to crack down on dangerous driving.

• As of last May, over 6.2 million traffic tickets adding up to almost $1.3 billion remained unpaid to D.C. since the start of 2000, the Washington Post reported.
• One Maryland car had $186,000 in unpaid fines from 339 tickets as of last year.

Earlier this year, the D.C. Council passed the Steer Act , which targets dangerous drivers via moves like levying points on vehicles for speeding and allowing the attorney general to sue drivers with multiple violations.

• Parts of the law could go into effect later this year — should the funding be approved, per a council spokesperson.

How it works: The "scofflaw" pilot targets cars parked in Ward 1 — which spans Columbia Heights, Mount Pleasant, Adams Morgan, the U Street Corridor, Park View, and Shaw — with unpaid fines totaling at least $3,000.

• Enforcement officers use license plate readers to identify vehicles with outstanding fines surpassing the threshold.

The intrigue: Ward 1 was picked as the launch point because there's likely a high concentration of scofflaw cars parked on the street instead of on private property, reports WTOP.

• The program might expand to other parts of the city if successful.