Car owners are expressing outrage that parking fees and fines in a US city could increase for the first time in decades.
Drivers in Colombia, South Carolina You may see several changes when it comes to parking in the city next year.
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In addition to increased parking fees, residents may also have to deal with the removal of some parking meters along the city’s main street, the local news outlet reported. Mail and Courier reported.
The changes include a pricing tier system that makes high-traffic areas more expensive than others, as well as a crackdown on parking violations.
As Main Street is a busy shopping center, especially between 11am and 2pm, this is the time when parking spaces can be even more expensive than the fares.
Locations further away from densely populated areas of the city would become progressively cheaper.
The ultimate goal of the parking changes is to increase the turnover rate in high-traffic areas so people aren’t sitting in the same spot all day.
“We just don’t want people sitting there all day because it hurts business owners,” Councilman Peter Brown told the Post and Courier.
Although the measures could come into force as early as January 2025, authorities are still awaiting approval from the City Council.
Despite a 2015 city study recommending an increase in parking fees due to changes that were never implemented, residents are still concerned that they may have to start paying more to park in the city.
In response to a post on Xformerly known as Twitter, about parking fees that Columbia Post and Courier sharedlocal drivers expressed their annoyance.
“What a joke,” said user X in response.
“This is stupid,” another person added.
Earlier this month, Brown emphasized that it has been decades since parking fees were adjusted.
He also noted that Columbia has a much cheaper cost of living than other cities in the state, local CBS affiliate. WLTX reported.
“It’s a service model designed, in my opinion, around the least efficient way of doing things, which is charging the least amount for the least amount of service,” Brown said.
How to Fight a Parking Ticket
You can avoid being fined by following all published laws and regulations, but sometimes mistakes are made
Like any form of citation, parking tickets can be avoided by reading and obeying posted signage. However, when visiting a new city, or state, or in a hurry, things can be missed and mistakes can be made.
Suddenly there’s a ticket you weren’t prepared to pay for. If the ticket comes as a surprise to you, there are some things you can do to help your case when appealing a parking ticket.
- Read the ticket carefully. Look for errors such as incorrect street names, license plate numbers, vehicle make and model, time and date, etc. Errors would render the ticket invalid.
- Take pictures. The vehicle in the space, lack of signage, or other vehicles that were not cited for performing the same parking service. If the ticket involves parking too close to something like a fire hydrant, a photo showing a reasonable distance would help your case. Make sure metadata with time and date is accessible. Signs that are obstructed by trees, or on crooked posts, or that are not “obvious” are also great things to photograph.
- Make sure the statute that was violated is listed on the ticket. If it is not listed, the ticket is not valid.
- Immediately follow the appeal instructions on the ticket. All legitimate tickets will have appeal instructions. Waiting until the last moment weakens your argument and can result in late fees.
- When in court, avoid these phrases as they reduce your credibility and weaken your argument:
- “I didn’t know the law.”
- “I was going to move my car.”
- “I can’t pay this ticket.”
- “I’ve been doing this for years.”
- “I checked with the parking officer, who said everything was fine.”
- Contact a lawyer. If you are facing obstacles and feel stuck, you may want to contact a traffic lawyer in your area. Many have free case consultations.
Source: Reader Summary
“So I think what we’re doing now is looking at the overall value of parking, the value of the community, the value of people and the value of what we offer as a city.”
One Charleston native expressed that parking is much more competitive in other South Carolina cities.
John Peters said the last ticket he bought in downtown Charleston was expensive.
“It’s kind of rough down there,” he said.
“I came back and I had a ticket, it was $14, and if I didn’t pay within a month, it was $23.”
Greenville, South Carolina, which does not charge for on-street parking.
Excluding Greenville, Columbia had the lowest hourly incremental rates for on-street and deck parking of comparable cities, according to data collected by a consultant hired by the city.
The same applies to Columbia’s meter violation fees.
City officials hope adjusting parking fees will free up spaces and improve service to the community.
Brown said the improvements would be vital to the city’s growth.
“If you drive around, you’ll see that Sumter Street has a lot of parking and Main Street doesn’t,” Brown said.
“So you’re in a situation where we need to balance parking services in the city center and allow people to come and go and have a reasonable rate or fee so people aren’t just sitting there all day.”
The city does not yet have a defined plan for increasing parking fees.
Despite plans to increase parking fees, Brown said the city does not plan to change free weekend or overnight parking.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
