Motorcycle Parking Fees Recommended without Notice or Public Consultation

[ariesmars]

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Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

My argument: We may be less inclined to ride rolleyes and use the car and further clog the streets. Less business for small businesses. Add to this.

 

[invictus43]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

With all due respect, a fee exemption for motorcycle parking would be gravy if congestion and transportation alternatives in this city had actually been dealt with properly. If you compare Toronto's transit system with other major cities of comparable size, almost anywhere in the world, it's a joke. Toronto mayors have been promising improved transit for literally decades. Until they actually produce alternative and efficient ways for people to move around this city, the last thing they should be doing is encouraging more car congestion.

And how does Toronto pay for this fancy transit system?

 

[RetroGrouch]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

Until they actually produce alternative and efficient ways for people to move around this city, the last thing they should be doing is encouraging more car congestion.

If you feel free bike parking had even the slightest affect on downtown gridlock, you're way off.

 

[evang]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

if it's passed we can always organize a 'silent protest' by deliberately spacing our motorcycles just like cars for the entire summer. If they want to throw in the ******** equality argument, and I quote:



then I sure as hell will throw it back in their face and will demand my ENTIRE parking space that I fully paid for.

No ****, you want to make me pay the full price of a car, then I'm parking my bike parallel to the curb and taking a FULL SPACE.



what happens when everyones parking stubs disappear and we get tickets? It would be amazing if everyone took pictures of the stubs, then requested trials. It would waste more time and money than it's worth to collect the miniscule amount of parking fees being missed out on.

 

[Rob MacLennan]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

And how does Toronto pay for this fancy transit system?

How did other major urban centres pay for it? They used to come to Toronto, to see how incredible our transit system was. They used it, and the plans going forward, as a model for their own. Now they're decades ahead of us, while a succession of Toronto City Councils has let things slide.

... just like they've let things like 100 year old sewer and water systems slide.

 

[rafiki911]

Re: We might lose free parking in Toronto

Can we merge the two threads?

 

[invictus43]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

Its also a very very short sighted move (much like most of the gravy cuts).

Not arguing with you really..just saying, we're a small voice..there are many more car drivers who represent the big vote. Like I say, which are the least hard decisions?

 

[Flashmonkey]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

He claims to read all of his email and respond to all his phone calls.

Well I guess we'll see. It would be nice if he did read it.

This situation doesn't affect my view of Ford. I voted for him and I still like him. I'm not sure why everyone's getting their panties in a bunch at this moment in time as nothing has actually happened yet.

Also, my biggest beef with this is the lack of information and the whole "let's charge them fees because it might get us a few bucks" mentality. That's stupid and I hate it when people make decisions based off of non-information. My email to Ford said as much.

 

[Hal Incandenza]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

I think it's a question of messaging, ie. what is the government's approach to moving people around a vibrant city? Free motorcycle parking may have a small effect relative to the overall picture, but still, it's something.

As far as I'm aware, Canada is the only major industrialized nation that does not have a national transit strategy. I don't think of it as a "fancy transit system" -- I think of it as a basic requirement of any world-class city, in a world where the majority of people now live in urban centres.

 

[invictus43]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

How did other major urban centres pay for it? They used to come to Toronto, to see how incredible our transit system was. They used it, and the plans going forward, as a model for their own. Now they're decades ahead of us, while a succession of Toronto City Councils has let things slide.

... just like they've let things like 100 year old sewer and water systems slide.

Name a city that's decades ahead of us! You're the City of Toronto..you want a subway..you need $8billion to get that done. Where are you going for that money? Seriously..they don't have a printing press. They have to borrow it (which means you have to pay it back some day and people expect a return on investment..), get it from residents via taxes (which they aren't willing to pay obviously..), they have to get it from other levels of government or they have to make a profit on the transit system. The bottom line is, a lot of people like driving and they won't pay for transit.

 

[ariesmars]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

Well depending on the price we'd have to pay, I wouldn't be totally opposed to it. If they don't allow us to park anywhere we can fit, I wouldn't park down-town.

 

[AdRath]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

Not arguing with you really..just saying, we're a small voice..there are many more car drivers who represent the big vote. Like I say, which are the least hard decisions?

I hope my response didn't come off arguementative it wasn't meant that way.

Your right the smallest voices will get nailed hard under the Ford rule. The poor will get hit hard also in order to save a buck rather than increase property taxes which is unpopular but long overdue.

 

[invictus43]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

I think it's a question of messaging, ie. what is the government's approach to moving people around a vibrant city? Free motorcycle parking may have a small effect relative to the overall picture, but still, it's something.

As far as I'm aware, Canada is the only major industrialized nation that does not have a national transit strategy. I don't think of it as a "fancy transit system" -- I think of it as a basic requirement of any world-class city, in a world where the majority of people now live in urban centres.

If I have to hear "vibrant city" one more fricking time!!!! Quit reading planning reports!!! How is the City responsible for the Federal or Provincial planning strategies?? Toronto would love to have better transit options..where's the money? Province. They tried to work with the Province to get something done that makes sense..Ford has changed that for better or worse. Which means MORE delays. The transit options have to make sense or you get a backlash for wasting money. Remember the Simpson's episode with the monorail?? Unfortunately there is a lot of bickering between gov't agencies and that's not the City's fault all the time.

I'd love to have bicycle lanes on all major city streets..do you think that will fly when 97% of commuters don't ride a bicycle? You have to be realistic as well or else you lose the audience.

 

[Flashmonkey]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

Well depending on the price we'd have to pay, I wouldn't be totally opposed to it. If they don't allow us to park anywhere we can fit, I wouldn't park down-town.

I can't possibly see how they would be able to adjust parking rates based on vehicle size without incurring additional cost....costs which would more or less cancel out any potential revenue they'd see from charging motorcycles and scooters these fees.

See...non-information. How the hell can we make decisions like this? It's like comparing apples to a magical dragon that doesn't exist.

 

[invictus43]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

I hope my response didn't come off arguementative it wasn't meant that way.

Your right the smallest voices will get nailed hard under the Ford rule. The poor will get hit hard also in order to save a buck rather than increase property taxes which is unpopular but long overdue.

I think it's a political thing. Just like the adult bicycle helmet law they tried to impose. I mean, how many cyclists are there? Easy group to target, no backlash and it looks like you're doing something good. I love hearing the phrase "low-hanging fruit" when it comes to budget cuts. I think the motorcycle parking thing is "low-hanging fruit". Easy to chop the freebie and make it look like you're making some cash. Few objections. Try killing a library (and really, they might have been right in doing that except for the furor whipped up by the media and others) and boy you'll see some trouble!!

 

[Hal Incandenza]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

lol.. if you heard Paris or New York or London described as vibrant I think most people would totally agree.. but somehow Canadians don't deserve great cities? heck, think Montreal in the 70s.. since when are we second class? And $8 billion is pretty much how much we had on the table, through city/provincial/federal cooperation.. it's not just about numbers, it's also about leadership..

If I have to hear "vibrant city" one more fricking time!!!! Quit reading planning reports!!! How is the City responsible for the Federal or Provincial planning strategies?? Toronto would love to have better transit options..where's the money?

 

[Rob MacLennan]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

Name a city that's decades ahead of us! You're the City of Toronto..you want a subway..you need $8billion to get that done. Where are you going for that money? Seriously..they don't have a printing press. They have to borrow it (which means you have to pay it back some day and people expect a return on investment..), get it from residents via taxes (which they aren't willing to pay obviously..), they have to get it from other levels of government or they have to make a profit on the transit system. The bottom line is, a lot of people like driving and they won't pay for transit.

How about New York City which not only has a much more widespread transit system, but charges a far lower cost for it.

 

[topendz]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

Motorcycle parking fee exemption is gravy. It was a nice gesture by the city but they didn't have to do it 5 years ago. Before the paper receipt machines were widely used, we still had to pay for parking with the coin meters and no one complained about paying for parking. Hey, I've saved hundreds of dollars for the past 5 years, that's not bad in my books. Sure I wish it would continue but if council votes it gone, so be it.

I mean no offense but that defeatest attitude will never get anyone anywhere, if people didn't speak out and fight for things the world would be an even worse place than it is now. Sure in the grand scheme of things this is small but if it's easy to take one thing away it will be easy to take another and another. Unfortunately your attitude is the same as many Canadians, we silently complain yet do nothing and wonder why we constantly get abused. Oh and by the way I get free bike parking so this doesn't impact me if I want to take the selfish approach, but I ride so I should speak for everyone. Just my 2 cents.

 

[iegod]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

I wrote to everyone. Even the president.

Dear Ms. Wong-Tam,

I'd really love to know why you supported budget chief's motion for enforcing motorcycle parking when promoting efficient use of transportation is one of the few things going right in Toronto. These bikes use less space on both the roads and in parking spots, use fuel in much smaller and more efficient quantities than other motor vehicles and don't cause the types of jams that we've become famous for in the GTA. Enforcing paid street parking for bikes is the wrong direction to be headed in my opinion.


Here are just some of the downsides I can foresee with enforcing this parking:
-An increase in false-positive ticketing of motor bikes since ticket stubs are impossible to secure to a motorcycle.
-A number of administrative personnel wasting their time (and taxpayer dollars) dealing with these mistakes.
-A number of parking enforcement personnel wasting their time by inefficiently tagging said false-positive bikes.
-Motorcycle riders positioning their bikes to take up the maximum amount of parking space (as opposed to the efficient, compact and angled parking positions on streets) thereby decreasing the amount of total available parking for other vehicles.
-A decrease in motorcycle ridership in general and a switch to larger vehicles as the benefits of being efficient are slowly eroded, thereby further adding to the already clogged streets and parking in Toronto in general.


Do you have some numbers on what kind of revenue you'll be generating by enforcing paid parking for motorcycles? An estimate even? I would seriously love to see those numbers and how you're weighing this decision, because I can't quite understand it aside from a penny-pinching move. And that sucks.


Kind regards,
ieGod
Concerned motorcycle taxpayer

 

[tricky]

Re: City council voting on getting rid of free parking for motorcycles today

Just read through the thread, this is the first time I've heard about this and it SUCKS. Free parking for us was one of those little bonuses that made motorcycling just a little sweeter.

I'm getting a funny mental picture of every bike at the major parking hotspots (Bay & Front, Elm st, etc) all taking up 1 spot. On a good day, I've seen 15 or so bikes on Elm all neatly parked in a few spaces. Now imagine them all lined up, end to end haha The city would freak out after a month of that every day:lmao:

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