Parking Meter Rate Increases (Oakland: homes, taxes, live)

[TechieTransplant]

Originally Posted by fleetiebelle

Pittsburgh Parking Authority approves higher rates

Parking meter rates to rise beginning Wednesday - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Enforcement until 10pm bothers me much more than the actual rate increase. I wonder what the effect will be. I know a lot of people take it for granted that you can go to dinner or Happy hour in Squirrel Hill or Oakland or the South Side and not have to pay for a meter.

I haven't read all the comments, but my/our simple solution to parking in Squirrel Hill is park on Beachwood and enjoy the walk through a beautiful neighborhood on your way to dinner or shop, for free. We've been doing that the entire time we have lived here.

[greg42]

Yeah I was just in Columbus the other day, only needed to be there an hour or two, and I parked at a meter and paid with my credit card. If I had thought about it before rushing out (it was emergency visit to other office for work) I would have grabbed some quarters, but it was nice not needing to, and also good not to have to settle for wasting $$ in a garage. Also, the meters are closer to the office than the garages.

Although, the pay stations they use in some places here with the slips you put on your dash are not necessarily an awful solution. Yeah, maybe requires a little more walking, but those take cards as well. They're using this now for Market Square parking spaces after the renovation. Plus it's used in various lots and other places around the city. The main drawback to those is if you start to run over you can't go back out and plunk in another quarter. You have to buy up for a whole new slip.

[pman]

not sure that "this isn't a 9 to 5 job" is a good excuse, seems like that's the case for others and they still have to pay monthly rates are private garages. do they pay the parking tax on these monthly fees?

Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, Pittsburgh City Council members and a handful of top city administrators pay $70 a month to lease on-street spaces along Fourth Avenue, while another 165 or so officials and employees pay the same monthly amount to lease spaces in a trio of city-owned lots Downtown.

County Executive Dan Onorato pays $60 a month to park in the courthouse archway, while about 215 other officials and employees pay the same monthly sum to park in a county-owned garage on Fourth Avenue near the old morgue.

Under an arrangement with the county, nearly 70 Common Pleas judges, senior judges and court officials pay $60 a month for spaces in two other Downtown locations.

In comparison, monthly leases for daytime parking at the Pittsburgh Parking Authority's Downtown garages cost $120 to $275, according to the authority's website. Monthly leases at Alco Parking's Downtown lots and garages range from $185 to more than $300, according to the company's websit

Read more: Hundreds of officials, payrollers get a parking break

[fleetiebelle]

A coworker was just telling me that they've changed all the city meters on/near the CMU campus to the new rates/hours, only it's not posted anywhere (the meters still say "enforced from 8am to 6pm.") I bet a lot of students who haven't seen the news this summer and this fall are going to get a lot of tickets. Maybe that's what the city's hoping for.

[Benzman66]

And the complaints and problems are just starting;

Parking meter changes an unpleasant surprise for some

[UKyank]

Originally Posted by fleetiebelle

A coworker was just telling me that they've changed all the city meters on/near the CMU campus to the new rates/hours, only it's not posted anywhere (the meters still say "enforced from 8am to 6pm.") I bet a lot of students who haven't seen the news this summer and this fall are going to get a lot of tickets. Maybe that's what the city's hoping for.

But you make alot more off fines than you do from quarters in the meter

This will of course also take away more residential parking spaces as people like me would rather park a block or 2 away in a residential parking area than bother with feeding a meter all night.

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by UKyank

This will of course also take away more residential parking spaces as people like me would rather park a block or 2 away in a residential parking area than bother with feeding a meter all night.

On the plus side for my incessant quest to regain my six-pack abs the city's Draconian new parking policy will have me walking to the Point from Polish Hill tomorrow after work to dine at NOLA and take in some free classical music!

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by fleetiebelle

A coworker was just telling me that they've changed all the city meters on/near the CMU campus to the new rates/hours, only it's not posted anywhere (the meters still say "enforced from 8am to 6pm.") I bet a lot of students who haven't seen the news this summer and this fall are going to get a lot of tickets. Maybe that's what the city's hoping for.

If inaccurate signs are still posted, can the tickets be enforced?

[Lobick]

Originally Posted by Caladium

If inaccurate signs are still posted, can the tickets be enforced?

Probably not, but it's also probably easier to pay the $30 ticket than going through the hassle of fighting it in court.

Not that anyone cares but I have little problem with the new policies. I always thought that it was wrong that I didn't have to feed a meter when I went to a happy hour on the Southside. In general, there is no reason that parking should be free in locations and at times when many people are trying to park. If it make more people walk to their destination or take mass transit, all the better.

[h_curtis]

Just more cost shifting to bail out pension funds that should have never been promised if they cannot afford them. All these promises without any way of paying. Guess they will find ways at the expense of businesses that are trying to make a living on happy hours or shopping after work, or whatever. More city expenses while the suburbs enjoy free parking and no worries. The city sure has a tough time keeping up with expenses. Seems Pittsburgh is doing pretty well, yet they still have to find more ways to make up for dumb past decisions.

Same as these huge teacher salaries. Giant long term costs with these huge pensions. Wait to see what property taxes are in 10 years. Ouch!