Most residents and visitors to West Chester would agree that parking has long been an issue for the Borough. The Borough alleviated some issues with its meter system earlier this year, but long-standing issues still remain with the Borough’s parking permit system. Borough government has committed to undergo a comprehensive parking overhaul in the coming year to see if many of the current system’s issues can be addressed.
Earlier this year, older parking meters were replaced by new meters outfitted with a credit card reader, giving users the ability to pay with a card. The meters are also compatible with a mobile phone service called “PassportParking.” This convenient service allows for users to pay or extend their meter from anywhere, and not have to worry about rushing back to fill their meter. Finally, since the adoption of the new meters, the parking department has given a 5 minute grace period for expiring meters, a policy that should help to cut down the number of tickets given. If you do receive a ticket for a violation, the Borough now allows for online ticket payment.
The Borough’s parking pass system is designed so that residents living in one section of the Borough are assigned a parking pass for that particular parking zone. Certain streets, depending on their location, may be designated free to park, requiring no permit to park there. Other portions of the Borough are designated meter-only and residents living there are not allowed to obtain a parking pass. The system, which initially may have worked, is slowly becoming bogged down with residents either having no place to park or having to park far away from their house.
The Borough plans to gather GIS data on parking throughout the Borough that will ultimately be used to identify parking woes such as high density bottlenecks. This data will provide government with information on where cars are parking, the quantity of cars per street, and, where the high-density problem areas exist. Once enough data on the current situation is procured, Council will then take whatever steps are necessary to fix the issue. There are a multitude of potential solutions and the Borough Council, especially the members of the Parking Committee, are open to any and all solutions.
While no solution is on the imminent horizon, Borough Council is actively engaged in working on a solution. The Borough’s Parking Committee meets on the second Tuesday of every month and encourages residents and students to come and voice their opinion. For more information on the Borough’s Parking Committee, head on over to their website at: http://www.west-chester.com/170/Parking-Committee.
Kyle Phillips is an intern for the Mayor in West Chester, PA. He can be reached at KP759844@wcupa.edu.