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Toronto Parking Authority Wants to Raise On-Street Parking Rates

Metered on-street parking rates may soon rise to match inflation.

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Photo by {a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomcochrane/4363444046/"}tom cochrane{/a} from the {a href="http://www.flickr.com/groups/torontoist"}Torontoist Flickr Pool{/a}.

A new front opened up on the vicious war on the car today—though the assailant came from an unexpected quarter. The Toronto Parking Authority thinks that the cost of on-street parking should, shocker, rise with inflation.

Rates haven’t gone up since 2007 and as we all know, money doesn’t go as far as it used to. This is true for the municipal government as much as any of us, and in this case, true of the revenue they get from parking. In order to match the 10 per cent increase in Toronto’s consumer price index since that time, the TPA is requesting that city council authorize the following price increases:

  • Spaces currently at $3.50 per hour go up to $4.00 per hour
  • Spaces currently at $2.50 per hour go up to $3.00 per hour
  • Spaces currently at $2.00 per hour go up to $2.25 per hour

The proposal will be considered by the Government Management Committee next Wednesday; if it is approved there it will go to full city council for a final vote.

Comments

  • http://twitter.com/synshow Syn

    It would be interesting if the TPA tried something like the demand based pricing system they are rolling out in San Francisco. http://nyti.ms/wxk6Ve

    • http://paul.kishimoto.name Paul Kishimoto

      I’m glad to see others are picking up on this!

      I was starting to feel like a broken record mentioning SF every time TPA was mentioned.

    • Anonymous

      That is such a great idea

  • Marc Cameron

    I though this article would be about on-street residential parking – the prices of which DID go up this time around. I’d like to know where the money’s going…

    • Anonymous

      Bend over and I’ll show you.

      • Anonymous

        Please. On-street parking is one of the single biggest subsidies going. Where else can you rent 100 square feet of city property for $13/month?

  • Anonymous

    Wonder if the Ford brothers will get upset at rising parking rates, or will they say it is not gravy and should be kept artificially low.

  • Anonymous

    I was in the coffee shop the other day and people kept coming up to me and saying they wanted plastic bags, free parking and SUBWAYS SUBWAYS SUBWAYS.

  • Anonymous

    Do away with free parking in all parking lots, including the 905.

  • Queue

    Everytime you call it ‘the war on cars’ you help our ignorant windbag of a mayor.

    • Anonymous

      And everytime you mention ‘LRT’ a kitten dies.

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_R36DSEBLSINKGD7IUYJQYFH7JA KLW

    Unfortunately, this hits the poor as well as the rich. I have to go downtown for regular medical treatments at the hospital, then get out to Etobicoke to work. Parking is awfully expensive and not covered by insurance. Otherwise, it’s often a toss-up for convenience vs. cost for parking vs. transit on the weekends, especially with kids.

  • Anonymous

    “Rates haven’t gone up since 2007″

    Considering how many other fees and charges the City has hiked in that interval, if true that is scandalous.