Downtown Parking Rate Increases (Philadelphia: 2015, lease, subsidized)

[fleetiebelle]

Parking rates may soar under lease plan

All-day rates at the authority's Downtown garages now range from $6 to $13.75, while rates at privately owned garages range from $12 to $17.78, Mr. Ravenstahl said.
He said his proposal would bring the authority's rates in line with the private sector's, which will make the 18,000 parking spaces more attractive to prospective bidders.
All-day parking rates at authority-owned garages Downtown would increase by as much as $4.25 next year and by as much as $10.25 by 2015, with later increases tied to inflation.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/pdf/2...king_rates.pdf

[BrianTH]

Good.

With or without a lease deal, there is no justifiable reason for the City to be subsidizing parking. Even the argument that it will hurt local retailers has been debunked--it turns out the availability of parking is a much bigger issue for shoppers than the cost of parking, and when you subsidize parking it ends up being less available for shoppers. And you also get more street congestion, which is another turnoff to potential shoppers in urban areas.

As for the lease itself, the only thing I don't like is the term--50 years is probably too long from an economic perspective (for reasons I won't get into unless someone asks). But I assume they are doing that to maximize the immediate revenues from the deal, in light of the pension problem.

[Geeo]

It's obvious that the downtown market can bear higher parking rates. Most garages are full by 9 am and the fringe lots are packed. I also don't see why parking should be subsidized.

[ferraris]

I've wondered how big of an effect higher parking prices downtown would have on PAT ridership. Has anything similar happened in another city?

[Geeo]

All I have is anecdotal evidence. Cities that are pretty dense with high parking rates seem to have pretty high transit ridership: Manhattan, Philadelphia, Chicago, San Francisco. I've been in Atlanta, Charlotte, Miami and have been amazed at how cheap downtown parking is in those cities. But they tend to be more spread out central cities with lots of room for parking lots.

[scrapp]

Originally Posted by fleetiebelle

Parking rates may soar under lease plan



http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/pdf/2...king_rates.pdf

Note that they are not just targeting Downtown... they want to sell off metered spaces and city lots throughout the city. For example, the article cites $3/hour metered street parking in Shadyside in 2015 (current cost = $0.50/hour).

[BrianTH]

I'm not aware of any specific studies (although they may well be out there), but higher parking fees Downtown are bound to create more potential demand for PAT. The trick will be making sure PAT isn't being crippled at the same time by reductions in state funding.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by scrapp

Note that they are not just targeting Downtown... they want to sell off metered spaces and city lots throughout the city. For example, the article cites $3/hour metered street parking in Shadyside in 2015 (current cost = $0.50/hour).

Yep, and that is where the local retail argument really has things backwards. Higher meter fees in places like Shadyside or Squirrel Hill will make them more attractive shopping destinations, not less attractive, because more parking will be available for potential shoppers, and traffic will likely be lighter too as fewer people are driving around looking for spots.

[Geeo]

The increased rates would hold in Shadyside as well. Daytime parking is usually at capacity. The rates for the street meters are too low now - a lot of employees who work on Walnut Street use them for all-day parking and just keep coming out to feed the meters, which makes it hard for shoppers to find a space. I know that Shadyside gets a lot of shoppers from out of the area, but it also has a high-density population that lives nearby and walks to Walnut Street for shopping.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by Geeo

Daytime parking is usually at capacity. The rates for the street meters are too low now - a lot of employees who work on Walnut Street use them for all-day parking and just keep coming out to feed the meters, which makes it hard for shoppers to find a space.

Yeah, that is a big part of the problem with too-low street-parking prices (employees and similar non-shoppers taking spaces for long periods).