Not his father's parking philosophy: Graham suggests meter hikes

Parking

Not his father's parking philosophy: Graham suggests meter hikes

by David Alpert • November 12, 2008 1:23 pm

To help shore up DC's finances, Jim Graham has proposed raising meter rates, including charging for Saturday parking, the Examiner reports.

Photo by Daquella manera on Flickr.

Contemporary parking thinking - and Michael Perkins' testimony last week - seems to be making an impact on Graham, who called the $1/hour rates "far, far below the market rate and constitute a very significant subsidy for visitor parking." Perkins, an Arlington resident, testified that he'd happily pay $2 or $2.50 an hour to be assured of finding a space downtown.

Graham is only suggesting a 50-cent hike to $1.50 an hour. DCist asks, why not $2? Still, if any increase is politically viable, raises revenue and reduces congestion, it'll be a good start.

I actually agree, a little bit, with AAA:

AAA Mid-Atlantic spokesman John Townsend said AAA wouldn't contest the rate increase if the new revenue were set aside for transportation improvements — an unlikely scenario. The council, Townsend said, should stop "penalizing" visitors and commuters.

AAA should drop its "war on drivers" language. Is it "penalizing" when your landlord tries to collect the rent you owe, or when the telephone company expects you to pay your phone bill?

Still, dedicating meter revenue to transportation is a good idea. We could use the money to build a streetcar system, help struggling business corridors, and stimulate more economic development that will strengthen DC's finances for years to come.

16 comments

Tags: AAA, DC, DC Council, Jim Graham, meter rates, parking

DC 2010 budget would end Saturday free parking (Mar 24, 2009)
Council will debate parking meter hike Monday (Dec 5, 2008)
Fenty budget raises Ward 2 parking meters to $3/hr (Apr 12, 2010)
Jack Evans defends bag fees and meter increases (Jan 11, 2010)
Have DC Councilmembers ever tried to park downtown on a Saturday? (Dec 17, 2008)

David Alpert is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Greater Greater Washington and Greater Greater Education. He worked as a Product Manager for Google for six years and has lived in the Boston, San Francisco, and New York metro areas in addition to Washington, DC. He loves the area which is, in many ways, greater than those others, and wants to see it become even greater.

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Prepare for a run on quarters.

by Andrew on Nov 12, 2008 1:34 pm • link • report

This is a good thing. Collect the money from still-too-cheap parking and put to moving people around without cars. After all, what's the point of having all this car infrastructure if no one can afford asphalt or gasoline?

by Cavan on Nov 12, 2008 1:52 pm • link • report

Yeah, but gas is approaching the $1.99 mark again..

by RJ on Nov 12, 2008 2:02 pm • link • report

Just so long as it's with a meeter that takes credit cards. It's not the charge that is a pain, it's finding the change.

by local on Nov 12, 2008 2:26 pm • link • report

Local, that's a really good idea. Those green multi-space meters are really convenient...

RJ, as far as gas going down, that is surely short term. Long term, the sky is the limit. Oil production dropped off 9% last year. There is currently an asphalt shortage. Anyone who thinks the $2/gallon gasoline is going to last is in for another thing coming. It will be in our best interest as a society to plan accordingly.

by Cavan on Nov 12, 2008 2:33 pm • link • report

Uh, I didn't say that *I* would be willing to pay $2.50 to park at Farragut Square, just that that's what the market rate would likely be based on nearby lots as well as other major city downtown rates (e.g., New York). If DC were doing it right, the price would likely be cheaper a couple of blocks away, and I'd be willing to walk if I were going to somewhere near Farragut Square.

I think for my case I was talking more about neighborhoods like Adams Morgan or Constitution Avenue near the Smithsonian museums, or Georgetown. That's where I would be willing to pay market rate, which I don't know would be $2.50 per hour. It could be, I just don't know. If it were that high I would probably take the Metro unless I was only going a couple of hours.

In any case, what Graham didn't propose was raising the rates only where it's currently overcrowded, it was just a blanket 50% increase everywhere, which I don't think is right. Surely DDOT knows where the meters are crowded all the time and can raise rates there. DDOT probably also knows where meters are generally empty and therefore shouldn't see an increase.

The point of performance parking is the rates that are related to demand, not just that the rates are higher.

by Michael Perkins on Nov 12, 2008 3:02 pm • link • report

Gas is cheaper than ever now, Cavan!

by Jazzy on Nov 12, 2008 3:09 pm • link • report

Jazzy, enjoy it while it lasts. It sure won't be forever. I give until March or so. And yes, I did pull that month out of thin air. But if I was a betting man, I'd put a whole dollar on it.

by Cavan on Nov 12, 2008 4:40 pm • link • report

all kidding aside, I say that it will go up like we've never seen before because energy demand seems to be climbing all the time across the world, yet we have a finite supply of oil that is starting to diminish.

The big legacy fields showed a 9% decline this past year. Discoveries have not kept up with depletion. What has been discovered is not as large as the other fields that are starting to decline. They are also in harder to reach places like the bottom of the Arctic Ocean. It will be far more expensive to extract it there.

So, in summary, we will be paying more to extract less crude. At the same time, global energy demand will continue to climb as it has since the dawn of the second industrial revolution. Based on those facts, my little prognostication is not strange or surprising.

by Cavan on Nov 12, 2008 4:45 pm • link • report

Multi-space meters are evil. Each one strips the area of anywhere to lock up a bike.

by Am turnip on Nov 12, 2008 5:15 pm • link • report

Not to be rude, but shouldn't we install multispace meters, since they are more convenient for everyone, and also install more bike parking, rather than complaining about the lack of bike parking that isn't a direct result of multispace meters?

Street bike parking (taking away one parking space) can work. Check out this video of what is happening in Portland, OR - http://www.streetfilms.org/archives/portland-bike-parking/. Also check out this video from Boston, MA - http://www.streetfilms.org/archives/alewife-stations-bike-cage-cambridge-mass/.

by Chris on Nov 12, 2008 5:48 pm • link • report

Meethinks that you and Mr. Townsend wouldn't agree on what qualifies as "transportation improvements"...

by Reid on Nov 12, 2008 5:49 pm • link • report

Let's raise the rate and why not tie it to inflation so we don't have to do this all the time.

by David C on Nov 12, 2008 8:11 pm • link • report

Cavan, this finical meltdown is putting a mighty large boot on the throat of the global energy demand, energy will go up but I expect the demand to be suppressed until we are off food stamps.

by RJ on Nov 13, 2008 9:51 am • link • report

I argue that the reduced demand from the global economic depression that we are entering will not be enough to counteract the dropoff in production.

However, it would be fair to argue the counterpoint that it will be enough.

by Cavan on Nov 13, 2008 11:36 am • link • report

Well Cavan, just looking at oil prices, either it's already happening (economic woes dropping demand more than the drop in production), or we had overinflated oil prices to begin with.

by Froggie on Nov 14, 2008 6:30 am • link • report