Any money gained from the sale of permits to people wishing to park in one of the City's seven two-wheeler parking areas wouldn't make up for the loss of automobile parking revenues, a memo from city manager Milton Dohoney Jr. says.

Four of the five previous spots and all three of the new spots – 110 E Central Parkway, Main Street and Gano Alley, and Elm and McFarland streets – were previously metered parking.

Parking for two-wheeled vehicles is currently free of charge.

In his memo, Dohoney estimates that, at an average of $6 per day per space – times the 255 days during which the meters charge – the revenue lost from those seven spaces is approximately $11,000 per year.

To offset this loss, in addition to the costs of installation and maintenance, City administration proposed a $50 annual permit system for two-wheeled vehicle parking.

The installation of "corral" parking instead of striped spaces, overwhelmingly preferred by two-wheeled vehicle riders through feedback received by the City, was expected to boost the number of vehicles that could park in the spaces at one time, possibly boosting the number of people seeking permits.

But with two-wheeler parking available for approximately 33 vehicles at a time and the assumption that twice as many riders will purchase the permit, the revenue generated would be approximately $3,300 per year.

"This amount would not completely offset the total cost of the program," Dohoney says.

"scooters" photo by , courtesy of Flickr.

Previous reading on BC:
Permits, additional spots recommended for two-wheeled parking (6/25/09)