Quote:
Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame
Then by your logic, we should start charging for every residential street that you will start parking on now, or raise the already-inflated downtown core parking prices, just to even things out? Good thing you're not a City planner; you'd be driving up inflation at a phenomenal rate.
You're right - people are going to completely abandon the Park 'N Ride system because you think people will be so outraged they won't show up for work anymore. Guess what? Parking lots that are hundred of dollars each month in the core, or charge over $20 per day are full on a daily basis. But $3! My goodness, the citizens won't have it. BS.
BTW, I'm as dumbfounded as you are about approving a new fitness gym; stop viewing City employees as evil, heartless scrooges.
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Actually, I put those last questions in because I can see what people who are saying "Good, let the users pay for it" are getting at, and I agree with it to a point.
But I'm also playing devils advocate to a point for a few reasons.
1) I think the city is going crazy in tax hikes/user fees. And while generally I don' t like it but understand it, there are a number of uses of the money that I don't agree with. The user fees are diminishing the "quality of life" that seem to be the justification for much of this.
2) I really do think that much of the purpose of public transit should be to allow lower income people inexpensive transportation, that it should reduce the downtown traffic, or I myself use it when I'm going out for the night and don't think I should drive later. I believe all of these things are going to be adversely impacted by this action.
I work in the NE, I moved to the NE to be closer to work. This change will probably affect me less in a year than most regular users in a month. For years the campaign has been to leave the car at home, avoid traffic and take transit. But the principle of this fee just seems to run counter to those campaigns.