Massachusetts DCR has a surprisingly broad parking rule. What was it intended to address, and how is it actually enforced?
302 CMR 11.02 defines live parking as the standing of an occupied vehicle. Section 11.04(30) prohibits it unless temporarily authorized by a DCR ranger, authorized law enforcement officer, or other authorized DCR personnel. The listed fine in 11.12 is $60.
Official regulation: https://www.mass.gov/doc/302-cmr-11-parkways-traffic-and-pedestrian-rules/download
This wording is not limited to RVs, overnight stays, or sleeping. Read literally, it raises questions about simply sitting in a car in a designated parking space. But a literal reading alone does not establish the agency's interpretation or enforcement practice.
The prohibition appears in a 2019 draft. That establishes that the wording was under consideration then, not when it first originated or why it was adopted:
https://www.mass.gov/files/documents/2019/06/03/2019.04.18%20%20-%20DRAFT%20-%20302%20CMR%2011%20%28redline%29.pdf
DCR says its on-street parking rules are primarily enforced by park rangers, with law enforcement partners also authorized to issue citations:
https://www.mass.gov/info-details/dcr-on-street-parking-program
I have not located a statement of purpose, relevant case law, or published guidance establishing whether this provision is applied to someone resting or sleeping in an otherwise properly parked passenger car. It should not be presented as a confirmed blanket ban on sleeping in cars throughout Cambridge; these are DCR rules, not a citywide Cambridge ordinance.
Does anyone know the history of this provision, have an official interpretation, or know of documented citations under 11.04(30)? Particularly interested in the distinction between waiting for a passenger, resting in a designated parking space, and occupying a vehicle overnight.