When it comes to parking cars or scooters in Italy, the creativity of using traffic islands, the pavement or simply the middle of the street knows few limits, Reuters reported.
But to get to grips with the endemic problem now, police in the capital of Rome have enlisted the power of social media to help them.
According to Reuters, a dedicated police Twitter account, @PLRomaCapitale, can be alerted by anyone who spots illegally parked cars. The police will then reply, typically in a matter of hours, to say when they have taken action.
The initiative aims to create a cultural shift, Raffaele Clemente, the new head of the urban police force said.
"Sharing, such as on social networks, is needed to fight certain patterns of illegality and rule-breaking, and also of crime," he said.
"Congestion is a serious problem in the capital. In the past, authorities have been forced to limit car access when pollution caused by exhaust fumes reached potentially dangerous levels," according to Reuters. "Over a half of Romans use private transport and the city has one of the world's most car-dense populations, with about 70 cars per 100 residents. Add this to a culture of rule-breaking and cobbled streets that wind along a narrow, often medieval street pattern, and chaos can ensue."
Cars parked in zig-zags across pedestrian crossings and pavements are pictured in photos flagged to police by Rome residents, Reuters reported.
A common problem is double parking, where vehicles pull up beside those already parked on the sides of the road.
Leaving only a narrow gap for the traffic to pass by, rows of cars four-thick are able to form. "In Cola di Rienzo street barbarity reigns ... Intervene!" wrote one user this week.
According to Reuters, the police replied seven hours later to say they had intervened: 25 separate fines had been handed out.
Once penalty notices started to be issued, initial skepticism among Twitter users about whether the system would work gave way to messages of thanks.
One user posted a photo of the police giving out fines under the rain. "Thank you and go on like this!" wrote another, Reuters reported.
