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Cars towed after Boston mistakenly says street cleaning is canceled

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BOSTON — An online mishap in Boston ended with a bunch of towed cars after the city accidentally posted that street cleaning was canceled this week.

Now the city is apologizing and helping drivers get their cars back.

Residents told Boston 25 News they rely on the Boston.gov website for information regarding street sweeping cancellations.

Wednesday, the city posted that sweeping was canceled due to weather so some people who would normally adjust their parking did not.

Alan Wong lives on Appleton Street. He knows to move his car to the correct side during certain Wednesdays throughout the month so the street sweepers can come through.

But he saw the announcement on Boston.gov clearly showing cleaning was canceled due to weather.

When he walked back to his spot after work, his car was gone.

"I didn't know if it got towed, got stolen," Wong said.

He called around, eventually learning his car had been towed and the sweepers did come through. He waited in the cold to take an Uber to the tow yard.

Then, he paid a $40 ticket. Then, he paid another $144 for the towing.

“It’s just very frustrating, especially because the South End normally doesn’t have that many spots anyway. It’s just very frustrating when you think a website that you trust and it’s by the government and that it’s false,” Wong said.

A screenshot from the city’s website Wednesday clearly shows street cleaning was canceled, but apparently, it wasn’t.

The City of Boston has admitted to the mistake saying the website inaccurately posted that street sweeping was canceled, which led to cars being towed.

Officials told Boston 25 News, “The Boston Transportation Department will be reaching out to the few residents we believe to be impacted by this error to assist them in receiving a reimbursement.”

The city is asking people to contact officials to appeal the ticket and tow.

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