Park and Pays?

[Deleted]

That seems a bit dumb. I would only consider paying it if that meant they then were STAFFED to guard against car break-ins. Which I'm sure they're not considering

[jennlin]

i clicked no..but if it was super cheap, like $1..then yeah, i might..more than that, no, it's not worth it.

[madDawg228]

I voted no, because I'm a cheap bastard. I would rather do a transfer/walk longer to a P&R than pay $0.01.

[mkate710]

I saw this this morning and it made me so mad. I live 15 minutes from work if I drive, but parking is ~$130/month, increases once or twice a year, and that's WITH some form of subsidizing from the company. So instead of pay for parking, I pay a small fee for a subsidized bus pass and take a bus from a park n ride about 5 mins from home. My actual bus trip is short, but it's a huge headache. I don't mind the walking that's involved, but it's just a hassle to haul my laptop/lunch/whatever else on the bus, especially when I have a long wait because of how neurotic STs schedule tends to be. I hate my bus commute, but I'd also hate to pay for parking.

I wouldn't mind so much paying a SMALL fee for the P&R if ST was going to put larger busses on my route and operate more closely to their schedule. But I don't want to pay to park to catch a bus that shows up whenever the driver feels like showing up and to stand and be packed in on a severely overcrowded bus.

I would hope the charges would be something that get added on to ORCA cards, and that my employer would cover or at least subsidize the cost. But that's doubtful. I really hope ST doesn't go through with this.

[amandasw]

I voted SS - what if the money you pay is credit towards your bus fare? I saw them mention that this morning on the news, in which case I think it's a great idea.

[Deleted]

Jul 25, 2012 15:06:15 GMT -5 @amandasw said:

I voted SS - what if the money you pay is credit towards your bus fare? I saw them mention that this morning on the news, in which case I think it's a great idea.

Do people park at a P&R and not take the bus? This thought never occurred to me, so I'm just curious.

[jennlin]

Jul 25, 2012 19:12:24 GMT -5 @uwhuskygirl said:

Jul 25, 2012 15:06:15 GMT -5 @amandasw said:

I voted SS - what if the money you pay is credit towards your bus fare? I saw them mention that this morning on the news, in which case I think it's a great idea.

Do people park at a P&R and not take the bus? This thought never occurred to me, so I'm just curious.

yup! when carpooling/vanpooling.

[Deleted]

Jul 25, 2012 19:40:29 GMT -5 jennlin said:

Jul 25, 2012 19:12:24 GMT -5 @uwhuskygirl said:

Do people park at a P&R and not take the bus? This thought never occurred to me, so I'm just curious.

yup! when carpooling/vanpooling.

Ahhh. That makes sense.

[amandasw]

Jul 25, 2012 19:41:36 GMT -5 @uwhuskygirl said:

Jul 25, 2012 19:40:29 GMT -5 jennlin said:

yup! when carpooling/vanpooling.

Ahhh. That makes sense.

yeah - the point of the fee isn't just to get more money out of people, they are trying to deter people who park there and don't use the bus

[jennlin]

Jul 25, 2012 23:17:29 GMT -5 @amandasw said:

Jul 25, 2012 19:41:36 GMT -5 @uwhuskygirl said:

Ahhh. That makes sense.

yeah - the point of the fee isn't just to get more money out of people, they are trying to deter people who park there and don't use the bus

But vanpooling is run by transit.......

[Deleted]

I have to park and pay every time I take the ferry. We have park and rides but that would require me driving off the island in the opposite direction and then taking the bus back. It costs $11 dollars to park and then you have to pay the return ferry fare which is $7.70 per person. I don't mind park and pays since I am used to them.

[amandasw]

Jul 25, 2012 23:24:04 GMT -5 jennlin said:

Jul 25, 2012 23:17:29 GMT -5 @amandasw said:

yeah - the point of the fee isn't just to get more money out of people, they are trying to deter people who park there and don't use the bus

But vanpooling is run by transit.......

ok, whatever - there are people who park there and do not use public transit! (like, they get friends together, all park there and then take one car - or maybe in the case of places like Northgate or near Greenlake, people just park there to use surrounding businesses).

[maddysmum]

Jul 25, 2012 23:24:04 GMT -5 jennlin said:

Jul 25, 2012 23:17:29 GMT -5 @amandasw said:

yeah - the point of the fee isn't just to get more money out of people, they are trying to deter people who park there and don't use the bus

But vanpooling is run by transit.......

I had the same thought?

Isn't the point of making transit as accessible as possible to get extra cars/single drivers to take the bus or carpool? To reduce the amount of traffic and for environmental benefits?

So, I don't understand how discouraging organized vanpools from using central P&Rs is beneficial to...well, anyone? I mean, I get that come P&Rs fill up, but people van-pooling and people bussing are both achieving the same goal. And in our area (where the P&R is huge and never full) vanpooling is the only public transport options as the buses don't run up into our neighborhood. So, in effort to take advantage of the benefits of public transport, many vanpool, reducing their environmental footprint and keeping 7 individual cars off the road (same goals as bussing) and utilizing the P&R makes that possible.

I actually think the charge is okay in theory (if the funds are used to create more parking which should be the ultimate goal) except that I worry that imposing a fee to park will discourage people from bussing. I worry that once you add in another charge, you reduce the benefits of public transport by another notch. And it would suck if by deterring people from parking in P&Rs the result is more individual drivers on the road.

[amandasw]

Jul 26, 2012 12:04:03 GMT -5 maddysmum said:

Jul 25, 2012 23:24:04 GMT -5 jennlin said:

But vanpooling is run by transit.......

I had the same thought?

Isn't the point of making transit as accessible as possible to get extra cars/single drivers to take the bus or carpool? To reduce the amount of traffic and for environmental benefits?

So, I don't understand how discouraging organized vanpools from using central P&Rs is beneficial to...well, anyone? I mean, I get that come P&Rs fill up, but people van-pooling and people bussing are both achieving the same goal. And in our area (where the P&R is huge and never full) vanpooling is the only public transport options as the buses don't run up into our neighborhood. So, in effort to take advantage of the benefits of public transport, many vanpool, reducing their environmental footprint and keeping 7 individual cars off the road (same goals as bussing) and utilizing the P&R makes that possible.

did you read my response?

[amandasw]

and, if people are going to carpool (NOT the official vanpool) they are probably people who know each other and could drive to pick each other up from where they live instead of all driving to a P&R to meet up.

ETA: regardless, I would support a fee ONLY if that fee could somehow credit your account for using public transit (bus/vanpool/whatever) so that people who are doing those things don't have to fight other people for parking spaces

PS also, none of this actually affects me because I take the bus from home, lol

[amandasw]

Jul 26, 2012 12:21:08 GMT -5 spunbutterfly said:

Plus, credits to ride the bus don't really help us? Our bus passes are completely subsidized by work, so I'm not sure how they could 'credit' park and ride to it? Oh well.

oh really? well that's lucky!

maybe you would use the Orca card to enter the lot too like when you enter the bus?

[maddysmum]

Jul 26, 2012 12:05:06 GMT -5 @amandasw said:

Jul 26, 2012 12:04:03 GMT -5 maddysmum said:

I had the same thought?

Isn't the point of making transit as accessible as possible to get extra cars/single drivers to take the bus or carpool? To reduce the amount of traffic and for environmental benefits?

So, I don't understand how discouraging organized vanpools from using central P&Rs is beneficial to...well, anyone? I mean, I get that come P&Rs fill up, but people van-pooling and people bussing are both achieving the same goal. And in our area (where the P&R is huge and never full) vanpooling is the only public transport options as the buses don't run up into our neighborhood. So, in effort to take advantage of the benefits of public transport, many vanpool, reducing their environmental footprint and keeping 7 individual cars off the road (same goals as bussing) and utilizing the P&R makes that possible.

did you read my response?

Yes - I wasn't responding to you - just in general. Vanpooling has come up a few times that I've heard and I didn't understand why.

Is that a concern though? Do THAT many people utilize the P&R spaces prior to commute times (before it fills up with "legitimate" cars) that they fill up?

I really have no idea - we're in Bellevue and ours is never full (and it's a huge, well used P&R).

And it doesn't affect me, either - I am not a person here and can't work outside the home anyway! ;D

[amandasw]

Jul 26, 2012 12:52:29 GMT -5 maddysmum said:

Is that a concern though? Do THAT many people utilize the P&R spaces prior to commute times (before it fills up with "legitimate" cars) that they fill up?

well, I just remembered that I have used the Northgate and Greenlake ones a few times when I had a rotation near downtown and they filled up FAST. They are also on the smaller side, but both could be abused by people not using public transit. But I have no idea whether that's actually true - not sure how they would know either.

[maddysmum]

Jul 26, 2012 12:55:42 GMT -5 @amandasw said:

Jul 26, 2012 12:52:29 GMT -5 maddysmum said:

Is that a concern though? Do THAT many people utilize the P&R spaces prior to commute times (before it fills up with "legitimate" cars) that they fill up?

well, I just remembered that I have used the Northgate and Greenlake ones a few times when I had a rotation near downtown and they filled up FAST. They are also on the smaller side, but both could be abused by people not using public transit. But I have no idea whether that's actually true - not sure how they would know either.

Yeah, I have no idea either.

You know what else I was thinking? If they were being used by other people, like say people going shopping and being unable to find parking, I wonder if a negligible fee would even make a difference? If you were parking in a P&R because you couldn't find parking elsewhere, would $1-2 deter you?

I don't know the answer to that, either but I just wonder if charging for usage is the way to go?

What if it were gated entry? And you had to use your Orca/Vanpool gas card (?) card to enter? I would assume most who ride the bus regularly would have an Orca card, and those who ride so seldom that they don't have one could probably find alternate parking/get dropped off? I don't know but I think something more like that a addresses the "problem" more than a fee based system.

Again...I don't know why I care - I don't use it! ;D But my husband does and as I dropped him off once this week, it made me think.

[amandasw]

Jul 26, 2012 13:32:30 GMT -5 maddysmum said:

You know what else I was thinking? If they were being used by other people, like say people going shopping and being unable to find parking, I wonder if a negligible fee would even make a difference? If you were parking in a P&R because you couldn't find parking elsewhere, would $1-2 deter you?

no, this is very true. I mean, parking all day for $2, that's nothing compared to downtown! a gated entry system would make the most sense. man, we need to write a letter with all the thinking we did! lol

Jul 26, 2012 13:32:30 GMT -5 maddysmum said:

Again...I don't know why I care - I don't use it! ;D But my husband does and as I dropped him off once this week, it made me think.

haha me neither, I just ride the bus from where I live so I rarely deal with this

[maddysmum]

Jul 26, 2012 13:35:06 GMT -5 @amandasw said:

Jul 26, 2012 13:32:30 GMT -5 maddysmum said:

You know what else I was thinking? If they were being used by other people, like say people going shopping and being unable to find parking, I wonder if a negligible fee would even make a difference? If you were parking in a P&R because you couldn't find parking elsewhere, would $1-2 deter you?

no, this is very true. I mean, parking all day for $2, that's nothing compared to downtown! a gated entry system would make the most sense. man, we need to write a letter with all the thinking we did! lol

To be honest, I really think we should get a cut. ;D

[amandasw]

Jul 26, 2012 17:36:52 GMT -5 maddysmum said:

Jul 26, 2012 13:35:06 GMT -5 @amandasw said:

no, this is very true. I mean, parking all day for $2, that's nothing compared to downtown! a gated entry system would make the most sense. man, we need to write a letter with all the thinking we did! lol

To be honest, I really think we should get a cut. ;D

:Y:

[jennlin]

i think that people who carpool though are still "legitimate" users.....

[amandasw]

Jul 26, 2012 17:57:42 GMT -5 jennlin said:

i think that people who carpool though are still "legitimate" users.....

well, carpooling is good, but I can't really see a reason they couldn't pick their friends up from home (which would probably be more 'green' since you only have the one car driving around), or really have a meeting spot anywhere else. It's possible that a P&R would be halfway between their houses I guess, but that's probably rare and/or not that much easier than just going all the way to the friend's house.

those carpoolers are definitely still better than people who park there to go shopping nearby, but I don't know how you could easily differentiate between the two if you were going to crack down on this.

[jennlin]

i dunno, i guess i see carpooling as different...you don't necessarily pick up friends, as some people carpool to work...at my old job (smaller company) there weren't enough people to run a vanpool, and the two people lived opposite sides of the freeway, and the p&r was in the middle...p&r makes sense...

completely different category than those parking to shop.

[maddysmum]

That's what my husband's carpool is like. I think there are 7 of them regularly and they live throughout the perimeter neighborhoods of Bellevue and Issaquah. So, it's either meet somewhere or no vanpool just because of the distance. And irregularity - seldom is it full. It would be a logistical nightmare figuring out who to pick up each day.

And that gets 7 individual cars off the road in favor of one van - that's good for everyone, right?