It’s the Silly Season (Posted Nov. 17) You can tell when the holidays are just around the cor-
PT BLOG
ner. There’s a chill in the air, decorations are in the stores, and politicians are lobbying for “free” parking. The New York Daily News headline says it all. “Politicians Urge Mayor Bloomberg to Turn Parking Meters Off for the Holi- days.” Read about it here. Wow! Everything we know about paying for parking – the
fact that it actually creates more parking space for customers, the fact that it provides turnover, the fact that it keeps employ- ees fromtaking parking spaces, and the fact thatmaking park- ing free for 90 minutes would probably be unenforceable any- way – all tell us that this is a bad idea. The holiday season is a time when people shop. They are
forced to shop; there is no choice. They will park, pay their fees, and then go about their business buying “stuff” for their families and friends. It’s what the commercial side of the holi- days is all about. Charging for parking, particularly when you have been
charging for parking for years, will not stop the holiday horde. I have been seeing quite a few stories like this Daily
News one. Some get even better. They see it as a “gift” to the citizens. Right – Provide “free” parking and lower the number of available spaces so people who want to shop can- not find a place. Great gift. Particularly for the merchants. Bah, humbug!
JVH You could have read these entries when they were original-
ly posted at Parking Today’s Blog – and commented, if you liked – by logging on to
www.parkingtoday.com and clicking on “blog.” JVH updates the blog almost every day.
PT
Maryland County Awards Pay-by-Cell to
MobileNow! The Montgomery County (MD) Department of Trans-
portation has selectedMobileNow! to implement its ParkNow! pay-by-cell service in all five parking districts in the county, including Bethesda and Silver Springs and coveringmore than 14,000metered on-street and garage spaces. The company says this contract was awarded based main-
ly on the success of its pilot project encompassing 1,250 spaces in Bethesda, launched in early 2010. As of mid-November, more than 6,000 individuals had registered to use the service. MobileNow! President Krista Tassa said, “We are very
excited to begin rolling-out the ParkNow! systemthroughout Montgomery County. This will allow thousands of addition- al motorists to enjoy the convenience of our pay-by-cell sys- tem. Having it available in so many different locations should also drive adoption rates and make this a highly used and valued system.”
On the way to the airport many things run through your head. With everything else to worry about, parking should be the last thing on your mind.
With WPS ParkID, parking becomes a smooth and painless process.With an easy to use, friendly interface and a remarkable fast and reliable operation, your customers will be able to park their car, hop on a flight and get on their way to have a fun, family vacation.
1:00pm Looking for a parking space 1:05pm Checking in with the airline
WPS ParkID Because parking shouldn’t come between you and a memorable vacation
www.wpsparkingsolutions.com An Imtech company
JANUARY 2011 • PARKING TODAY •
www.parkingtoday.com 49
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