Boston Towing Contract Renewal Puts Spotlight on Uneven District Practices

BOSTON — August 26, 2025 — Boston City Council hears that police-ordered towing lacks uniform standards across the city's districts. The Committee on City Services and Innovation Technology held a virtual hearing Tuesday on Docket 0554, sponsored by Councilor Liz Breadon, examining public authority towing practices as the Boston Transportation Department's street cleaning towing contract nears renewal. Deputy Chief for Transportation and BTD Commissioner Nick Gov told the council that in fiscal year 2025 BTD issued nearly 107,000 street cleaning parking violations and towed 13,504 vehicles under a contract with seven private vendors, who pay the city $35 per tow while charging residents $132 for the tow plus $35 per day of storage. Kim Lowell, executive director of the Statewide Towing Association Inc., told council members that police-ordered towing operates on a district-by-district basis with no standardized vetting process, saying access to district rotation lists can depend on personal connections — "very much antiquated way of doing things." Council members formally requested documentation of each police district's tow company lists and approval procedures, and Gov said a new request for qualifications for the street cleaning contract will be issued later this fall.