Parking Proposals
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For the public input in the Village of Hinsdale, we heard many suggestions to confront the parking challenges that the Village is facing. These are some of the proposals, along with our thoughts on each one and the reactions that we typically hear from people.
Parking Proposals
- 1. A shuttle would be great for commuters who want to take advantage of Hinsdales excellent Metra schedule, but cant find parking. But increasing the attractiveness of remote parking may just entice drivers from other communities, adding to traffic congestion. The Village has asked Metra if some express trains could stop at West Hinsdale instead of downtown, but this change would take Metra a long time to implement, and quicker solutions are needed. Have more express trains at other Metra stations or a shuttle from remote lots to the Hinsdale station. You pay for parking in Naperville whether you are aware of it or not. Every business in their Special Services Area has an additional tax on purchases that helps to pay for their garages. And for anyone who walks, bikes, or takes transit to the store, they have to pay more for their goods to subsidize drivers. The garage in La Grange was funded with a federal transit grant, and was intended to be used for commuters. This has been controversial with residents who are not allowed to use it for commuting due to time limits. Maintenance costs for the garage are paid through taxes, again making goods more expensive for people who walk, bike, or take transit, while subsidizing the least sustainable mode of transport. There should be options for parking. For people who want to park for free, there currently is free 2-hour parking within a 5- minute walk of the intersection of Washington & Hinsdale Ave. For longer term parking, there is free parking within a 10-minute walk. The paid parking is for the convenient front-door parking spot. In a mall, it is not uncommon to walk more than 5 minutes to your car. When the price is set to match demand levels, it keeps the spaces about 85% full. If people stop parking at the spaces, prices would be lowered. If spaces are 85% full, businesses arent suffering. And when its easy to find parking, customers will find it more convenient. For the sake of customer convenience, increased prices should only be done with meters that accept credit cards and cell phone payment, as well as coins. These meters should remind customers when the meter is about to run out and allow them to add time remotely. Coming soon! Demand-based pricing is a strategy to manage demand when supply is limited and costly to increase. The Village is willing to return any additional revenue back to the street where the money is collected in the form of streetscaping, pothole repairs, or other needed improvements. Eliminating the meters would cause employees and commuters to remain in the most convenient spaces for longer periods of time, forcing paying customers to drive in circles cruising for a space (or not find one at all). Increasing the supply of parking would increase the demand for parking and not necessarily solve the problem of parking availability in front of stores, salons, restaurants, and other businesses. Each space in a parking garage costs approximately $30,000. Construction of a garage would effectively cost the Village $5 per space per day for 40 years. If revenue from taxes on downtown purchases is greater than $5 for every space, this would be a good idea. Is every shopper spending $250? Some are, but most are not. When drivers are willing to pay $5 for daily parking, a garage would be a good idea. Until then, making better use of existing spaces is the fiscally conservative choice. La Grange and Naperville have free parking in garages. How do they afford it? When prices are set to match demand levels, with the goal of 15% of spaces available per block (1 of every 7), long-term parkers (employees and commuters) will park further from the core and make prime spaces available for customers. When customers are able to quickly find a convenient space, and park without fear of getting a ticket, they find the experience more enjoyable. I wont pay any more for parking! This would kill businesses. I never have enough change. Increased prices will make this even more annoying. Sometimes employees are shoppers, and they shouldnt be punished when they come downtown outside of work hours. And if they can remove the sticker, then theyll probably do that during work hours, so that they can park closer. The cost of parking is the only proven disincentive to employees who regularly take up prime spots. I didnt know that! I need a map of this free parking. It can be hard for police officers to distinguish between shoppers and employees, and increased fines on shoppers would be very bad. Additionally, there are times when employees or business owners need to unload goods from their car and need to park closer. Carrots work better than sticks, and allowing employees to pay for this convenience, when necessary, is important. The Village is just trying to generate revenue! Enforcing time limits is difficult and costly; they are currently in place and not efficient, and they punish shoppers who dont want to feel rushed for fear of getting a ticket. Get rid of all the meters and let people park for free. Build a parking garage Eliminate time limits and use demand-based pricing. Make employees put a sticker on their car and only let those cars park in employee spots. Increase the fines on employees who park at metered spaces. Make parking free with 2-hour time limits Parking Ideas