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How would you change parking in LA?
FILE: A citizens advisory group this week presented its recommendations on making parking easier in Los Angeles.
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How would you change parking in LA?
Los Angeles drivers tired of parking tickets may be cheered by recommendations from a citizens' group on parking reform presented to the Los Angeles City Council Transportation Committee this week.
Take our poll on parking reforms.
Many of the group's ideas focus on reducing parking tickets from expired meters and street sweeping restrictions — tickets unrelated to driving safety.
Jay Beeber, one of the group's co-chairs, said members asked in drafting their recommendations: "How can we be more fair to people, but also not encourage people to break the rules."
For example, a driver might get a warning for a first-time parking violation, or a more affordable ticket for $23 and more expensive fines for repeated infractions.
The group also recommended cutting down on expired meter tickets by charging people’s credit cards when they actually leave the spot – much like they are charged when they leave a parking garage.
"It’s less guesswork for the public, there might be fewer violations, which is a good thing. And the city would probably get more revenue," Beeber said.
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For those pesky street sweeping tickets, the group recommends allowing people to park after a sweeper truck has passed and possibly sending electronic alerts to people's smart phones when they are parked in a sweeping zone.
L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti convened the group last year. Among its members are representatives from an advocacy group, the Los Angeles Parking Freedom Initiative, which had pushed to place parking reform measures on the ballot. The group also includes concerned citizens and urban planning experts from UCLA's Institute of Transportation Studies.
The members released their full report with recommendations this spring, but only presented them to the Transportation Committee on Wednesday.
The committee voted to refer the various ideas to different city departments for further study before it considers motions to adopt them.
So we want to hear from you. What do you think of the group's recommendations? Vote for your favorite idea below:
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