Broadway parking to be prohibited prior to July 4 parade

Hannibal Police Chief Lyndell Davis is not a worrier by nature. Still, he couldn’t help but fret that something bad might happen during the National Tom Sawyer Days Parade on July 4 if something wasn’t done to keep spectators from surging into the street during the parade.
“For years people have thrown the give-aways, the candy, the toys, out in the street. It’s like a moth to a flame. The youngest patrons that are out there watching the parade will drift out in that direction and pretty soon a parade route that might be four lanes is encroached upon and now you’re down to one lane,” he said. “We’ve had some close calls. We had some close calls last year. Literally about every year we’ve had the parade we’ve had some close calls, but over the last few years it seems like it’s getting gradually worse.”
In an effort to start off with spectators further back, no parking is going to be permitted along the Broadway parade route from 12:01 a.m. Friday, July 4, through the end of the parade later that day. According to Davis, this same practice has been successfully employed as a crowd management tool during the annual Dogwood Festival Parade in Quincy, Ill.
How does restricting parking help keep the crowd back?
“When you have vehicles parked on the roadway it’s a natural tendency for people to even put their chairs to the outside of the parking lane. People standing in the parking lanes around the cars will start to step out and then the smallest among us, children of course can’t see anything and then they drift out in front of the parents and the next thing you know you’ve narrowed the parade route,” said Davis. “The idea behind it is that without having cars there it will give people a better view of the parade and be less tendency to encroach on the parade.”
Special signs will be posted to alert the public of the no parking area. Starting at midnight, officers will be patrolling Broadway to prevent anyone from parking along the parade route.
“Hopefully we’ll get 100 percent compliance without much difficulty,” said Davis, adding that an effort will be made to contact the owner of any vehicle still parked on Broadway late today. “We’re going to do everything we can to try to get the owner or operator of the vehicle notified to move the vehicle, whether that be knocking on doors, or making phone calls to get them removed.”
Davis did not rule out having vehicles towed in an effort to clear the parade route.
“That would be a last-ditch effort. We’re not going to rule it out. We’re trying to do everything we can not to have to tow vehicles,” he said, noting that prohibiting parking along Broadway has the blessing of the city council.
Davis understands that the new rule could present an inconvenience for some.
“We’ve been asked where will the handicapped park. They can still park on the side streets as they did before. There just won’t be any parking available on Broadway during the parade,” he said.
Davis stressed that the whole purpose behind the new parking guideline is to create a safer environment for parade participants and spectators.
“An accident still could occur, but we think we’re lessening the chances of that. The No. 1 thing is we’re just trying to provide a safer event,” he said. “We’ve had close calls. We just can’t keep saying, ‘Well, next year we’ll do something about it.’ This is another step that we’re trying to add a little more management, a little more security to the event so we never have to have a bad situation.”