A new parking meter program was announced by City Council on November 16th that will cause the prices to rise and fall in Vancouver.
Parking meters in areas that are used a lot will see the prices go up, while meters that are seldom used will see a drop in cost.
The new program will implement a number of changes to the current Parking Meter Bylaw:
- Parking meters may be introduced as required to manage curbside availability;
- Parking meters may have different daytime (9AM – 6PM) and evening (6PM – 10PM) rates to better reflect the parking demand in those time periods;
- Given the significantly higher number of rate combinations that are possible, hourly parking meter rates will be rounded to the nearest whole dollar to facilitate better communication and way-finding;
- Parking meter rates will be adjusted annually based on data collected regularly throughout the previous calendar year;
- Where the peak curbside occupancy exceeds 85%, the City will raise the parking meter rate by $1/hour in the next calendar year;
- Where the peak curbside occupancy is lower than 60%, the City will reduce the parking meter rate by $1/hour in the next calendar year; and,
- Business Improvement Associations may request that additional parking data be collected to support a recent rate increase – the City will roll-back increases where the resulting curbside occupancy falls below 60%.
The program sets out to make it easier for people to find parking, help support local businesses and be able to better manage parking in residential areas.
For more information on the new program, visit the website.