This is your reminder: Street sweeping season begins on Tuesday, April 2.
So if you'd rather not contribute to that rather large pool of fines, start reading your local street signs! (You can also type an address into this handy tool to see what the deal is.)
How many street-sweeping tickets does Denver issue each year? How much money does the city make?
Denver issued 152,177 tickets in 2023 for people parked in street sweeping zones, down 2% from 2022. If all of those $50 tickets were paid on time, that adds up to $7,608,850 for city coffers.
Did you guess correctly? Please reward yourself with a cookie!
Why does Denver street sweep, anyway?
Denver's Department of Public Transportation and Infrastructure (DOTI ) would like you to know that street sweeping is an environmental measure. Here's a statement from DOTI spokesperson Nancy Kuhn:
"Denver’s annual street sweeping program removes dirt and debris off city streets, keeping it out of our air and water and making our environment cleaner and healthier. Denver asks residents to move their cars on their street sweeping day so the sweepers can reach all the way to the curb line where dirt accumulates. The removal of debris also prevents storm sewer inlets from getting clogged. DOTI also reminds people not to sweep leaves into the street."
DOTI once brought us into their cool, Gotham-style building above the South Platte River to talk to us about this seasonal phenomenon, and told us their dust munchers pick up enough crud to fill Coors Field nine feet deep.
Another fun fact: We once used horses to do this dirty work. Just take a look:
