City Hall
McGinn's Parking Rate Proposal Didn't Come Out of Thin Air
A lot of critics have assailed Mayor Mike McGinn for proposing an increase in parking rates to as much as $4 an hour downtown---arguing, for example, that the changes will devastate the restaurant industry, "discourage people from coming downtown
," and turn Seattle into L.A.
However, that recommendation didn't come out of nowhere---it was the result of lengthy analysis by the Seattle Department of Transportation, which found that a parking rate of $4 per hour downtown would reduce congestion from circling cars, promote turnover and better compliance with parking regulations, and have a minimal impact on how many cars use on-street parking downtown.
Additionally, the SDOT analysis found that raising parking rates was consistent with existing city law that calls for a parking policy that encourages open spaces on every block (so parking is easy to find) and reduces "congestion from excessive circling by moving on-street rates closer to garage and lot rates in various parts of the city."
The fair-market rate downtown, as we've reported, is about $7 an hour. Currently, parking costs just $2.50 an hour---barely more than a third of market rate.
At $4 an hour, the analysis found:
• The parking-space occupancy rate downtown would decline by 9 percent.
• That projected reduction would give drivers "a better chance ... to find available parking."
• Four dollars an hour would be "similar to downtown Los Angeles, the Loop in Chicago," and within the range of new San Francisco rates.
• Higher on-street parking rates will shift some parking demand to private lots.
Additionally, the report recommends that the city move toward a "dynamic pricing system," in which rates are higher when demand is higher. In San Francisco, which just got a federal grant to implement dynamic parking, city leaders are contemplating rates as high as $6 an hour.
Read the whole thing for yourself here.
However, that recommendation didn't come out of nowhere---it was the result of lengthy analysis by the Seattle Department of Transportation, which found that a parking rate of $4 per hour downtown would reduce congestion from circling cars, promote turnover and better compliance with parking regulations, and have a minimal impact on how many cars use on-street parking downtown.
Additionally, the SDOT analysis found that raising parking rates was consistent with existing city law that calls for a parking policy that encourages open spaces on every block (so parking is easy to find) and reduces "congestion from excessive circling by moving on-street rates closer to garage and lot rates in various parts of the city."
The fair-market rate downtown, as we've reported, is about $7 an hour. Currently, parking costs just $2.50 an hour---barely more than a third of market rate.
At $4 an hour, the analysis found:
• The parking-space occupancy rate downtown would decline by 9 percent.
• That projected reduction would give drivers "a better chance ... to find available parking."
• Four dollars an hour would be "similar to downtown Los Angeles, the Loop in Chicago," and within the range of new San Francisco rates.
• Higher on-street parking rates will shift some parking demand to private lots.
Additionally, the report recommends that the city move toward a "dynamic pricing system," in which rates are higher when demand is higher. In San Francisco, which just got a federal grant to implement dynamic parking, city leaders are contemplating rates as high as $6 an hour.
Read the whole thing for yourself here.
