Austin addresses parking needs in downtown areas

Parking meters and garages

Grassfield said one of the main ideas behind the parking meter system is regular and consistent turnover of spaces so businesses and residents can find nearby parking.

"[Turnover] is important for businesses, whether they be restaurants, jewelers or grocery stores," he said. "Typically what the business wants is available parking for you as a customer to be able to come downtown. If you can't drive downtown and find parking fairly close to that business, that can present some problems."

Hours for the stations—for which drivers pay by credit or debit card—were amended in 2011, increasing enforcement time in the downtown area to 8 a.m.– 6 p.m. Monday–Wednesday, 8 a.m–midnight Thursday and Friday, and 11 a.m.–midnight Saturday. Parking duration also was increased from two to three hours, with five-hour parking available in some areas.

Grassfield said for visitors who intend to stay longer than three hours, parking garages are a good option.

"If you're going downtown to a couple music venues, you're probably going to be down there longer than three hours, and we'd like to focus you on parking in a garage," he said.

Since the switch in hours, Grassfield said, the city collects about $7 million from all meters, about $2 million more than it did before changing the hours.

Another change to the meters came at an Oct. 18 Austin City Council meeting, where officials established a minimum of an hour—which currently costs $1—for credit/debit card transactions at pay stations because transaction fees for the city increased to 25 cents from 10 cents.

Accessibility and awareness

To add some parking as the city grows, Sangeeta Jain, development service process coordinator with the city's Planning and Development Review Department, said the city requires the developer of new construction to include parking as part of the property's design.

"When people come in for a place of business, they need to have parking, and off-street parking needs to be provided by every business," said Jain.

Grassfield said drivers' awareness of parking options also plays a crucial role in congestion and transportation.

"Our idea is to help you get from Point A to Point B as fast as possible," he said.

He said typically 30 percent of the traffic in a downtown area is people looking for parking spaces. The city is considering implementing a wayfinding program to help people locate available parking and attractions.

According to the Downtown Austin Wayfinding Master Plan, goals for the project include emphasizing downtown Austin as a destination and improving mobility by incorporating a range of navigation tools.

"We've got a lot of visitors coming into town for the first time, and unless they know where to go, you create the atmosphere where people are driving around in circles," Fillion said. "Wayfinding signage will help people find where they need to go faster."

Another tool to help residents and tourists navigate Austin is a smartphone application called ParkMe that shows users how much and where on-street parking is available. The free app is not a city service. Grassfield said it is one way to enhance a visit downtown.

"You don't get discouraged [looking for parking]," Grassfield said. "Part of your experience in going downtown is being able to find parking pretty easy, so that's why we were able to work with this app company."

Alternative transportation

Fillion said it is important for a city to provide drivers with options.

"I think [alternative transportation] plays an important role in not just addressing parking, but overall mobility," she said. "To have the option to give up your car is important as we grow."

Fillion said the city works with taxis, pedicabs, car-sharing programs, low-speed electric vehicles and valet services, and provides infrastructure for bicycles.

One alternative the city has addressed is the city code relating to valet parking services.

"Valet does play a critical role in moving cars off the street," Fillion said.

Councilman Chris Riley said during a City Council work session Nov. 6 that valet services provide an essential service in addressing parking and congestion in Austin.

"We need to keep in mind that these valet operations are performing a tremendously valuable service in getting a huge number of cars out of the on-street spaces," Riley said. "What it's doing is increasing the supply of parking that is available to the public. It's taking all of those cars off the street and putting them in garages and making better use of our garage space."