Would you believe that the city wants to screw you over with parking? Could you? Yes, you could and you should, since officials have proposed that the city expand a pilot program which would increase parking prices based on the busiest hours and what location you're looking to park. Or in other words, force the meter rates to fall in line with the consumer market. At this rate, we'll all be parking in bike lanes in the future.
It's unclear how high the rates would be increased, and where exactly, but the Post gives two examples based on the pilot program: in the West Village and Upper East Side, it costs $3.75/hr. from noon-4 p.m., otherwise $2.50, and in Park Slope it costs $1.50/hr. from noon-4 p.m., and otherwise 75 cents. What's clear is that people are already pissed off about the potential changes: "It's a rip-off. The city needs to close a gap in the budget and one way to do it is raise parking prices. Mayor Bloomberg should leave drivers alone," said Alecsey Boldeskul, 39, of Brooklyn.
This news comes on the heels of Bloomberg's latest dire budget proposal, in which he wants to hike base level rates at more than 60,000 Muni and single-space meters from 75 cents to $1 per hour in residential areas and from $2.50 to $3 in commercial zones. Isn't it about time someone started a new political party to focus on this issue, perhaps with a name like The Parking Prices Are Too Damn High?
