PT's Parking Blog

It is Horsefeathers

Peter Guest, PT's expert on all thing parking and not in North America, has taken me to task in his January Column on my comment that giving tickets to delivery vans in the active process of off loading is rediculous.
The article I referenced noted that people were being given citations on their windscreen while their trunk was open and they were putting goods into the back. Here's what Peter wrote:

In a recent blog entry JVH criticized UK authorities for ticketing vehicles that were loading and unloading “This is patently absurd” says our leader and issuing a citation because the law says you can’t park there is “horsefeathers”. Well no John it’s not.  Most of our towns and cities pre-date the car, buildings don’t have loading bays and our street pattern was old when the Romans got here.

Result: in many places a narrow street has to be shared by pedestrians, buses, cyclists moving traffic and people making deliveries. It doesn’t all fit in and so we to share the space, usually by time-based restrictions. Parking may be banned all day (use the car park) and loading is banned in the peak to maximize traffic flow. Loading is allowed in the middle of the day but the length of time is limited so that a van isn’t left all day by a shopkeeper is too lazy to walk a few yards. Believe it or not this happens.

 

Parking enforcement need to get a life.  Here's what I wrote that created Peters reaction:

It seems that they are giving tickets to folks who are loading and unloading cars and merchants going about their daily business. This is patently absurd.

Of course the most hated folks in the UK are parking enforcement, and for good reason. They use no common sense whatsoever.  The answer "The law says you can't park there, so you get a citation."

Horsefeathers. The enforcement folks need some leeway. This ranks right up there with giving tickets to priests administering last rights and ambulances picking up the sick.

If the parking community wants to build a consensus with the parking public, we need to be consistent, but fair. We need to be able to know when to cite, when to warn, and when to smile and walk away.

If not, we will truly earn the moniker, "Parking Nazis"

I stand by my comments. If you have special circumstances like ancient towns and cities designed for a buggy trade, then you need to be flexible.  The merchants AND enforcement need to work together to solve these issues. If not, the merchants will be forced to move out of the central towns and there will be plenty of room for bicycles, those on foot, and the odd horse. Of course there will be no reason for them to be there because all the shops will be in the big mall on the edge of town.

If a merchant isn't in the active process of loading or unloading, then give them a "quiet word" to move on and if they don't, cite them. The repair trucks illegally parked at a coffee shop should be cited. In New York City UPS paid over a million dollars a year in fines. It was a cost of doing business. However finally the city and the delivery people got together and set up a program where they could purchase permits to deliver on a daily basis. They still double parked, but were motivated to move quickly, since if the permit ran out, they would be cited.  Probably about the same money changed hands, but the citation process was greatly reduced. All were happy.

Sorry Peter, but often these issues must be decided by smart people on the spot, not by inflexible rules and regulations which drive automatons to provide citations on vehicles obviously going about their business of doing business.

JVH

Nimby or NIFOMH

Not in Front Of My House...No parking there, except for me and the folks I want to park there and for heavens sake they can park for free. But should anyone else want to park there, Off with their heads...

I was talking to a friend who lives in a nice part of the city of Torrance. Its a block from a local high school and around the corner from a hospital.  Schools and Hospitals close, that drives up values. But of course, it also means that there are parking issues. She constantly rails on the students and doctors parking in front of her house, cluttering up the neighborhood with their cars.

"We need restrictions on this parking," she says.  I asked her why not institute a program of permit parking on her street and allow anyone who wants to buy a permit to park there. She was aghast. "Tttthat's like inviting them in to park. No, never, nada, zero, zip, ...It will happen over my dead body."

Well, I added. What if the money collected from the permits and fines could be used right here on your block. Your streets need repaving and the trees have reeked havoc with the sidewalks. I notice the park where you take the dog to run is pretty lame. Wouldn't some new grass, trees, and a picnic table or two be in order. Now here is the kicker -- what if, because we were generating so much money from the parking, that we were able to lower your property taxes (this is a pipe dream, but an obvious extension).

Suddenly her demeanor changed. She began to think of all the things she would like to see in the neighborhood -- more police, perhaps a traffic light where they enter on to Torrance Boulevard, and lower taxes...Now there's something that caught her eye.

The last part about the taxes won't happen but maybe this would keep from raising them. But the other things things aren't. This could work and work well. The people parking there would have registered. They would be the same people every day. Enforcement would be around daily to ensure that there was no cheating -- and adding a bit of security since they would be there with eyes and ears...

Its just how it is sold.  The idea that I must have three broken down cars in my driveway and park my new truck, van, and sedan on the street is absurd.  If I have to pay to park on the street, I'll probably call the wrecker, clean out my driveway, and park my cars where they belong. It just gets better and better.

A blog reader from Florida sent me an email and noted that there were always a couple of naysayers on every board or commission and they usually had all the volume.  She also noted that there were some who "got it" but they knew that politically they had to move slowly.

Selling is selling.  You do your best when you have something that your customer either wants or needs. If you walk around the naysayer's property and then tell them that if we just had the money, we could replace or steam clean that sidewalk, or put in new benches, or plant trees, or have summer concert programs across the street, if we just had the money.

Of course, if we charge for parking, we solve a bunch of other problems, (availability, cruising, etc) and have the bucks for improvements....

Back to the mantra...

Charge market rates (but with Goldilocks in mind) for on street parking
Put the money back into the neighborhoods from whence it came
Do away with parking requirements for development and redevelopment in the area.

These three rules will revitalize a downtown, clean up a neighborhood, and solve all sorts of issues like cruising, congestion, pollution, and probably original sin and global warming, too.

JVH

Why don't they just call it what it is....

City of Sarasota, FL, has decided to raise the prices at its local civic center theater by charging a "parking fee" on each ticket. They are surcharging $2 a ducat. Let us see just how unfair that is.  I decide to go to the theater with my family of six to see the Nutcracker this Christmas Season. I pay a "parking fee" of $12. 

However my friend Charlie who hates the classics but loves the Pink Martini, and couldn't get a date if his life depended on it, goes to the theater stag and pays a "parking fee" of $2. Note that we both parked one car for the same amount of time.

My"green" cousin who believes that bean sprouts are roast beef and hasn't sat foot in a car for 10 years slaps on her Birkenstocks and hoofs it to the Ravi Shankar concert and pays the two bucks to park, probably under protest after picketing for an hour and burning her undergarment (hasn't worn a bra in recent history.)

So the city is going to collect a quarter of a million bucks next year under false pretenses. If they are going to charge an additional $2 for a parking fee per ticket, why shouldn't everyone drive themselves. My wife could drive, the teenager (if I had one) could drive, and we could feel warm a cuddly taking up three spaces in stead of one.

This, of course, is a way to mask a fee increase. There is probably some kind of codicil in the deed to the property at the theater that went into effect when old Mrs. so in so donated the land that said they couldn't raise the fees on tickets more than a certain amount per year and I'm sure they are maxing out on that.

So they get around it by calling it a "parking fee."  Its not a parking fee, its a raise in prices, since they are charging everyone the fee, whether they drive or not. And get this justification:

"It's not unusual for entertainment venues and events to have paid parking," Bartolotta stated in the release. "There's paid parking at Ed Smith Stadium and Disney. Why should this be any different? With this parking fee and other user charges, we hope to eliminate the Van Wezel's deficit over a three year period."

Right. Mickey charges me $10 to park. They collect the money as I enter the garage. Its the same whether I'm alone or have 12 screaming kids in the car. $10 bucks to park. Makes perfect sense to me.

These kind of fee increases, masked as parking charges, frankly give our industry a bad name. I'm not sure what we can do about it, but if any of you have an idea, let me know.

This just pisses me off...

JVH

The Third Party

I have been railing about the problems of putting market based on street pricing in effect, particularly in communities around colleges and universities where residential neighborhoods run right up against the school and the students/faculty park there rather than in university lots.

The other issue is that there is typically student housing surrounding the schools and there isn't enough parking so the students park in the neighborhoods, causing the residents to haul out the torches and pitchforks and attack city hall.

The city dads then try to make the world safe for everyone and cut the baby in half. By doing so no one is happy and the problems simply keep getting worse and worse. No one is going to mention the fact that if there was paid parking in the neighborhoods, everyone would benefit and all would be right with the world.

See, it works like this:

You set up a parking control district that includes both the on street and available off street parking in a particular area. You can, if you like, provide a parking permit to each homeowner for no charge, and then if they need more, they can pay the going rate.)They should be parking in their garage anyway.) You then sell permits to whoever needs to park in the area at the market rate. You can also sell permits for unused spaces at the local church, bank, amusement park, or shopping center. If the shopping center knows that it is never full and has 20 spaces always available, then sell 20 permits for those spaces.

You then compensate each area based on the amount of money collected, both from fines and from the permit sales. So the residential areas would get new street lights, or sidewalks, or perhaps an extra police patrol or two, the businesses would be compensated for the use of their property and the students, best of all, would have an alternative to no place to park. It is seldom an issue of not having the money to park (after all they could afford the car,  the gas, the insurance, and maintenance) its simply not having the ability to purchase parking anywhere. Beside when better to learn that you have to pay your own way that at college.

The problem is typically political. Politicians, like the local council, are simply unable to "sell" this type of program to the local citizens. They fold at the first hint of resistance. What you need is a third party who is vested in the deal to sell it and market the results. 

I suggest that this is a great opportunity for private operators to provide assistance where its needed, and make a few shekels on the side. Of course they would have to become experts in the science of market based parking pricing and returning the results to the neighborhoods from whence it came, but why not?

I know this is a simplistic view, but can anyone come up with a reason it won't work?

Plenty of space below to knock the pins out from under me.

JVH

The Gang that Couldn't Shoot Straight

Here's proof positive that thieves are not the brightest bulbs in the chandelier.

In Massachusetts a man goes into a number of stores at a very Tony mall and steals a ton of stuff. These are high end stores and he did it in broad daylight. Of course, he was caught on a myriad of CCTV cameras in the stores AND on cameras in the mall when he passed his lucre to a female accomplice.

Mall security broadcast a description of the man and woman and he was caught in the mall. She was caught with two other women when they asked a policeman to help them find their lost car in the mall's parking structure. He recognized the woman from the broadcast description and arrested all three.

When the cops found the car it was brimming like Santa's sleigh, only pretty high end. There was even a purse that retailed at 10 grand. 

All are in the slammer with a lot of charges.

Sigh

JVH

A great promo idea - Drive a Lexus, Park Free at the Mall

In Raleigh, NC, shopping mall managers have noticed that during the holidays their lots begin to fill and people would like some help. One mall has instituted valet parking. If you eat at one of a couple of restaurants in the mall you can park for free, but if you don't you can still use the valet, but the cost is $4.

Here's the neat part. They cut a deal with the local Lexus dealership. If you drive a Lexus, you can park free at any of the valet stations. I'm sure that the dealership picks up the parking, and maybe more expense, for the great PR.  Probably the Lexus dealer did a mailing to his customers, and made a lot of great customers from good ones.

This is the direction our industry needs to go. There is a lot of potential out there for this type of promotion. Clever people make a deal, everyone benefits.

JVH

The problem with Parking Requirements

Don Shoup and I have been talking for years about how zoning parking requirements destroy downtown development. Well, even though we should believe Dr. Shoup and his research, here's an article that goes a long way to confirm the thesis.

The Kalamazoo, MI, city planners have set up a downtown district where developers can build without having to meet the city's stringent parking requirements. What they discovered is that although development is booming downtown, areas right across the street from district are lying fallow.  They are now about to expand the district to attract more development in the area around the core of the city.

Its only logical. Developers aren't stupid. They are going to build their buildings and renovate older ones where they have less restriction AND where the parking requirements are reasonable. They know that their building will not be attractive is there isn't enough parking, but the civic planners usually place requirements that go far beyond the needs of the development. This is costly and often stops the project.

Way to go Kalamazoo

JVH

The Headline is confusing

A local TV station reported in Albany, NY, that "Police issue tickets in handicapped parking sting"

HUH - I saw the movie and a "sting" is where a unsuspecting "mark" is lured into a situation where they can be bilked out of their hard earned cash.  In this case, the police simply decided to enforce the law on a particular day and checked all the handicapped spaces for violators. They found 76.

Good enforcement, yes -- Sting, No

JVH

Cute

The head of parking enforcement in Rome, Italy has been fired after he was caught parking in a no parking spot using a permit that had expired and been issued to someone else. The firing happened, however, only after the incident was reported in the local press.  I wonder had it gone unreported, if he would have his job today.

JVH

Parking in Provo

I have been beating this horse for a few months now, but no one seems to be listening. Here's the problem. There are a lot of students who live in the area near BYU but have no place to park their cars. They park them "on street" only to gain the ire of the local residents. The residents want permit only parking so they can park and keep the students out.

The city wants to "force" the apartment owners to provide parking, and may open up some no parking areas on street to the students.  It seems, also, that there are various lots around which have space, but "cannot" be used for student parking, in case someone wants to come down and use the ice rink or water park, a lot that I guarantee you is never full.

A student suggested that both homeowners AND students be allowed to get permits.  Oh, yeah, we are putting in a permit program to keep the students out and then provide permits to the students.  Another suggestion was to set up a parking district, collect taxes, and pay for student parking that way.

Balderdash. What is the matter with these people?  Charge market rates for on street parking. Sheesh.

If homeowners AND students had to pay for the permits, maybe they would rethink the need to park on the street. Students who pay for the permit would be more likely not to cause havoc in the neighborhoods, and if they did, the permit number would be a way to track em down.

This would also mean that local businesses (like the water park/ice sheet) would be enticed to open their lots to paying customers (monthly).  This will only work, however, if the on street parking costs more than parking in the off street lots. In the winter, there are few parkers there, and in the summer the students are gone and they can get their entire lot for use.  My guess is that other businesses in the are have available parking and would love to make a few bucks issuing paid permits to park there. 

Students can afford the apartments, they can afford the cars, and the upkeep, and the insurance, and the gas. Why can't they afford to pay for a place to park the vehicle? Makes no sense to me.

JVH

Parking Chaos at the Malls

The Problem as quoted to the local Toronto radio Station:

"It feels like a madhouse only because people always look for that closet spot to the centre. There's always plenty of parking spots just a bit farther away," Jai Lee, a spokesperson for Yorkdale, told 680News.

 

She said one option might be to use Yorkdale's valet parking. "It's $5, you come in and park your car; you can even get a car wash as you shop," she said and added it's a free service for seniors and the disabled.

There are plenty of parking spaces just a bit further away. That tells the story of virtually every mall in the country. Andy took his family to the mall on Friday and found plenty of parking, on the roof of the garage. He says he was in, parked, and spending money in less than 10 minutes.  I went to the local mall on Friday and found plenty of parking in their underground garage beginning at the third level down (there are six). It meant I had to ride one more escalator to get to where I was going.

Yes, the uninitiated parker wants a space, they want it free, and they want it to be six feet from the mall entrance. The will cruise for hours looking for it, all the time blocking everyone else. They need to be enticed to other spaces.  I have a solution.

Charge for close in parking and make the further out parking free.  Simply put staff on each floor or in each area and collect whatever amount it takes to get people's attention.  Spaces close in could be $5, those further out, $3 and the one's around the curvature of the earth could be gratis.  Some signage could communicate the deal, along with some good PR.

The staff could simply say, parking here is $5 but if you go down two more floors, Its free. Likewise for the close in, far out lots.

The absolute best way to change people's habits is through their pocketbook.  If $5 isn't enough, make it $10.  Take the money and use it to cover the cost of collection and put the rest in the Salvation Army buckets...

Everyone is a winner.

JVH

The Thanksgiving List

From now until January its a season of lists. Shopping lists, Christmas lists, lists of new year's resolutions, grocery lists all surround us and keep us going. There have been lists of things for which we should be thankful on this most American of Holidays. You know the drill, family, country, the good Lord, our abundance, health, a winning season for the home team, that new car...some deeply spiritual, others cloaked in humor.

Most management types tell us that the best way to handle a task is to break it down into its smallest parts and then start with them. It takes the overwhelming project and gives it some perspective. With this approach you can also prioritize and quickly see which parts of the new assignment grows from others.  I wondered what would happen if one took all the lists above and limited the number of items one could put on them.

I decided to try it with Thanksgiving. Consider that list above -- virtually all of it grows from one thing. The fact that we as individuals can create whatever we want in life. We can make decisions that affect US and then can proceed to grow to our abilities.

There are places on earth where worshiping the "wrong" God can be a death sentence, places where families are torn asunder by prejudice and hatred, places where even minimal health care is a dream. There are places, and a lot of places, where hard work and sacrifice mean nothing.

For me, then, I whould give thanks to all those who came before me in America that created a place where anyone, assuming they had drive, determination, and made the right choices in life, could become successful and happy.

Were they perfect, of course not. But they created the longest running constitutional democracy on the planet and the most free and prosperous one.

There are those who decry our country, our government, and in fact the very lives we lead. However the fact that they can do so without retribution is part of what makes us strong. You can support anyone you want for leadership positions, any belief system, any policy and as long as you don't impinge on others, you are free to lead your life any way you want.

This country has developed an unwritten social code that simply says that we have put up a few rules and if you follow them, work hard, get educated, you will be successful. Period.  Look around you, those that aren't successful have broken a few rules, abandoned education, or have decided that hard work is not for them. Think about it.

We should give thanks for the country that allows the free market to work, and lets those who "can" do, and those who "can't or won't" still have the greatest lifestyle and abundance on the planet.

What this means is that because of the structure ( or sometimes lack of it ) of our country, we succeed or fail by our own abilities and our own goals. If I want to take a cut in pay and teach, and follow that dream, I can do so. If I decide I would rather take a job where I get a higher pay, but the risk for the future is greater, it's there, too. Or if I want to sit back and blame others for my failure, I have the right to do that, too.

So this Thanksgiving, the focus of my thanks is on a country that let dirt poor folks from the Ozarks who decided to change their lives, and through hard work and sacrifice, in less than a generation, were comfortable, well off, and provided a foundation for their offspring to take even further steps in happiness, success, and personal comfort.

Its not a unique story, its replayed daily, everywhere in our country. The immigrant next door whose kids are engineers, architects, and yes one neer do well but every family has them. The family who started in the dust bowl and now has the comfortable shop in Monterey. The college nerd who became the richest person in the world. None of this based on family wealth, or peerage, but on hard work, playing by the rules and education. Where else can you almost guarantee that by following those three things you will be successful.

I'm thankful that my country provides the canvas on which I can paint, and the freedom to pick the colors.

How about you, when you break it down, what single thing is the most important to you today? A strong position can be held for the good Lord, for good health, for strong and vibrant children, and the rest. That's what makes us great. Differing opinion, differing outlooks, and even differing definitions of just what "success" and "happiness" is.

All the best -- and eat as much turkey, or ham, or pasta, or tamales, or whatever abundance fits your table as you like. You deserve it, at least once a year.

Happy Thanksgiving.

JVH

Can't they run a surface lot?

Manny Resores from the UK sent me a link concerning the problems of Central Parking (and other companies) in San Francisco. Watch it here. Its worth the view.

Seems local entrepreneurs are gong to unstaffed POF lots and during rush hours standing in the lanes and collecting up to $6 a car. Then when the checkers go around later in the evening, they are tagging all the cars that didn't use the POF and giving people citations for $25 for not paying.

This scam isn't new. But it seems to be an epidemic in SF. There are a lot of unmanned lots in the bay area but this scam works best where there are a lot of well heeled folks going to the opera, theater, or out to dinner.

I felt a little sorry for the Central Manager. She was put on the spot. We commented on the problem when the SF Examiner discovered the scam earlier this year. We even called the Central Manager but got no return call.

This is ridiculous. It shows that as an industry we can't even keep our lots supervised.  If there are three guys spending 2 hours collecting money on the lot, and getting up to $6 a car that means they must collect, what $300 or $400 a night. And that's for less than a couple of hours' work.  Wouldn't it seem to be a good idea to put someone on the site to stop the problem. Or, how bout calling the cops. According to the SFPD they have had no formal complaints from the operator.

In fact, couldn't one supervisor drive by each of these lots every half hour and call the cops and keep these guys running. 

Hire an enforcer type. Pay him to drive around to all the lots (perhaps all the operators could get together and hire the same guy) and ensure that this scam wasn't happening. What's so damn complicated about that.

If there are 10 lots in the city, that probably collect $3000 to $5000 a night total, if you paid someone 10% of that to be sure you get your money, wouldn't it be money well spent.

Of course you would also have to do what the scammers do, and that's look at the schedule of events around the lots and see when activity is at the peak, and be sure your guy hits them on the right days and times. 

The manager says its an economic problem. Well, when people are saying "Never Park at a Central Location" the problem may be worse than you think.

JVH

I have to tell you I never have liked Richard Roper

You know, the movie reviewer and Chicago Sun Times Columnist. He's the one that's holding down the fort for the ailing Roger Ebert on the "Ebert and Roper at the movies.  He has written a column about all the things he hates about the holidays, and pretty obviously, Christianity. Read his column here and if you aren't offended, not aren't breathing.

The focus of the article is a screed against Parking and Pay on Foot in particular. Here we go:

Some of my least favorite things aren't really things -- they're trends. Like Pay-on-Foot Parking. It sucks! Don't you love it when the robotic voice says, "Please insert card with the stripe up and facing to the right," and, "Cannot read credit card, please try again," and "Your card is being validated," and, "Can't you figure out how to work this machine, loser?"

Just remember, there are no cashiers. They're all at home and out of work, cursing the invention of Pay-On-Foot Parking.

And how about those parking machines that require you to buy a little print-out ticket and place it on your dashboard? It's the city's way of taking away that cool little triumphant surge you feel when you're lucky enough to find a parking space with some "free" time left on the meter. Now they can milk every single one of us for every single moment!

Not a fan.

I have to admit that I rather agree that most of the verbal instructions are unnecessary. You will note that ATMs don't have such instructions but beyond that, he is just ranting and obviously doesn't have all the facts.

Cashiers are mostly working in other jobs in the parking industry. If they aren't, they have moved from one low paying job to another. I doubt seriously that any cashier supplanted by a POF is sitting home crying.

I wonder if Mr. Roper likes it when he has to sit for 10 minutes to get out of the garage because the combination of the cashier and the driver are dealing with collecting money, or credit cards, or arguing over tickets. With POF all that goes away and he sails out of the garage. I'm sure he's never cursed the parking attendant for the cost of parking, or been upset over the fact that he had to park on the roof. These types simply want it both ways.

He, probably never having had to collect money or make a payroll in his life, doesn't understand the problems with a cash oriented business, security, and of course installing POF also keeps down costs which keep down the prices of parking, even in the Loop in Chicago.

He is happy to steal money from the city by using some elses parking fee. He obviously believes that parking should be free and that it should be up to the city to provide him a space for his car, which I guarantee isn't a Honda Civic. The taxpayers should provide for him. All the people in Chicago that don't have cars (and ride the Metra) should pay for his privilege to park. And if someone got out of a meeting early, they should pay for his parking.

Mr. Roper may not be a "fan" but he will certainly appreciate it when he has a place to park and use his credit card on street because the City of Chicago had the foresight to install parking equipment that would take a card and charge fees that will make parking available to him. Also, as he sips his Chardonnay on a sidewalk cafe in the Windy City, he will notice that there is plenty of room since the meters and posts have been removed.

 

J

The "Experts" are full of it

The experts are predicting that increased gas costs are going to crush the Christmas Holiday spending. Of course if the main stream media keeps reporting it that way, it could become a self fulfilling prophecy.

But lets do the numbers.  Say the average car drives 24,000 miles a year and gets 20 miles to the gallon. One is high, the other is probably low. That means that it will use just a smidgen over 23 gallons a week.  Now, assuming that gasoline is up $1 from "wherever", that means that the average person will be spending about the cost of four Coffees at Starbucks a week additional for gas.  Of course the prices aren't up a buck, but more like 50 cents but I'll be conservative.

Lets compare our costs here with the UK.  The price of gas there is about $5.50 a gallon (that's a US gallon), Its about the same across Europe and over six bucks in oil rich Norway.  Of course you could move to Venezuela where its 12 cents a gallon but that's another story.

Here in the US at this writing the average gasoline price is $3.10 a gallon. (It always goes up over holiday driving periods for some strange reason). That's up from $2.70 in September. So my comparison above is probably twice what it should be.  OK you folks in California, the reason your gas prices are so high it that in your infinite wisdom you have required the suppliers to make a special "blend" and have not allowed any new refineries to be built. Also remember that an average of 43 cents a gallon is collected in various state and federal taxes nationwide. In California its 60 of tax cents a gallon. That's almost 20 cents a gallon more in California.  What a bunch of nincompoops we are.

So if we aren't conservative with my numbers above, and be realistic,  the average car is costing about $10 dollars a week more to drive today that it did in September. 

Of course you will NEVER hear this from the drive by main stream media.  They will scream and scream about how horrible the high gasoline prices are and how folks are being driven out of their homes, taking food from their mouths, and will have no Christmas because of high fuel prices.  There will be interviews with folks who decided not to take a vacation, or go see grandma. Balderdash.  The facts simply don't bear it out.

Ok, about $20 a week is something but it isn't the end of the world.  The MSM and pundits want so badly to bring bad news that they never NEVER consider the other side. Fair and Balanced -- HA 

I think the biggest problem is the numbers on the outside of gas stations -- Its a constant reminder of what we pay for fuel. There are no numbers on the outside of MacDonalds, or the Grocery Store, or Macys. The only price we have put in our face daily, hourly, is gasoline (OK and perhaps parking) prices. 

This is a good marketing ploy since people usually go to the lowest price. I go to Costco which is usually about 10 cents a gallon lower than the street average.  That means I save about $1.50 per fill up, that's over $120 a year.  And I don't have to drive out of my way.

End of screed

JVH

"Free" Parking in Seattle for the Holidays

I have always wondered at the efficacy of providing "free" parking during the holidays. It seems to me if there ever was a time to charge, around the holiday's is it.

Unlike other times of year, people are going to park anyway. There is no doubt about it. Why give it away free? But more importantly, it seems to me that the time to use the free market to control the availability of space is when it is most demand.

People come to shop and need parking space. Why not ensure that the space is available by charging market rates.  What will happen is that folks will say "Parking is FREE" and the spaces will be jammed.

Oh, but Seattle has rules for its "Free" parking...

Only on Fridays and Saturdays from Nov. 24 through Dec. 22.

Only in the Public Market Parking Garage (1531 Western Ave.) next to Two Angels Antiques.

Only if you show $30 in receipts from Market merchants at the validation tent near "Rachel" the pig between noon and 4 p.m.

Note that the day after Thanksgiving is not included. Receipts must be from the same day you park. And it's one pass per person per day.

If the rules are that complicated, what have the free parking at all.  Folks will be confused, and you entire parking program is at risk of loosing its effectiveness.

JVH

Blackberrys and Parking

I got a Blackberry about a month ago.  I had fought the urge for years but my wife prevailed and I purchased a Blackberry Curve.  Its a tad smaller than the original BB, but has a full keyboard and more features than I can possibly every use. The best part is that I can check email and respond from anywhere. This is important for quick trips, or when I'm out and about. No need to carry the laptop and find a hot spot. Its great.

It is, however, addictive.  Now I won't go anywhere without it.  I can check my email, get phone calls, and even  find maps and get directions as to where I am going, all instantly and on line. I'm sold and have become an advocate. 

Today in the Wall Street Journal there was a cartoon. Two businessmen talking -- "What's the point of having a high speed internet connection, instant messaging, and a Blackberry, if I waste 45 minutes a day looking for parking."

Nuff said.

JVH

But what if you're fat?

I read that New Zealand is collecting tons of money due to a new scheme that uses electronic funds transfers (CC, Pay by Cell, etc) as well as cash. OK, so be it.  Nothing new there. However did you know that if you weigh over a certain amount, you cannot emigrate to that beautiful land that gave birth to the Lord of the Rings movies....By the way, I think the director of LOTH Peter Jackson would never pass the BMI test.

Yes, that's right. New Zealand has a body mass index requirement of 25. If you are over that (its a combination of weight and height) they won't let you move there.  Some poor Brit who is a technical guru dealing with undersea cables just barely squeezed in under the limit, his wife, however did not. She's on a crash diet but who knows?

OK, lets talk BMI.  Before I went into the hospital I had a BMI of 30.1 (that meant I was Obese). I lost about 15 pounds and have a BMI of 27.8., and am still overweight. I would have to lose another 20 pounds to be able to become a naturalized citizen of New Zealand. Do any of you that have seen me believe for a minute that I am obese?  OK I could stand to lose another 10 or so, but mainly that's so my clothes fit better...

Wanna check your BMI -- Log On here.

You may be surprised. 

Their reasoning -- if you are overweight, you have a bigger problems with your health and therefore would be a draw on their government sponsored health care system.

OK, lets take this through to its typical government bureaucratic conclusion. Countries with government provided health care can simply deny health care to anyone who doesn't meet their standards of good health. Smoke? You are outtta there. Drink -- not a chance. Spend too long at MacDonalds -- off the program.

What if your parents had a problem that may, just may, have been passed on to you?  (poor eyesight, that weak kidney, maybe certain types of cancer). Does that mean that you are not allowed on the government program?

We've seen stories like this coming from the UK, Canada and now New Zealand.

Of course, where you can buy health insurance, at least you can get coverage. It may be expensive but you can get it. In New Zealand, they don't even let you in if there is a possibility that you could get sick. The husband is the story above was a footballer and his doctor said in great health.  The wife may have been a little thick around the middle, but why is that any business of the government.

Finally they came for me.

JVH

Here's a solution - This one is Rich

Murfreesboro and Rutherford County (TN) governments are going to crack down on employees who park on local streets and then move their cars every two hours to get around parking limits. They are issuing a memo. Read all about it here.

Seems if you read deeply into the employee manual for the local government, it says you can't take a break (as in every two hours to move your car) unless you have your supervisors approval. The problem might be finding your supervisor, unless its on the street, moving their car.

Wouldn't a better solution be to do away with "two hour free" to a charge system. If the locals were concerned about charging for parking (shudder) they could simply give the second hour free and charge a quarter for the first hour. When the time ran out, issue a ticket. A couple of tickets and that would be the end of it.

Of course you would have to sell permits in the local garage that was less (or about the same as) the on street prices.  At a buck a day, that's $20 a month. My guess is that in Murfreesboro you could get $30 a month in an off street lot and people would still pay, because its not worth $10 to constantly move your car and still risk being late (or caught by your supervisor who takes the bus) and getting a ticket.

When will the every learn.

JVH

Oh My Goodness!!! Parking Will be Tight at the Airport

Its begun. The main stream media is in panic mode over holiday travel issues. One of the biggest, parking at the airport. Headlines are screaming "Parking To Fill Up Fast in Jacksonville" and the like. All they have to do is look back 12 months and change the dates on the articles. Of course this is not news to anyone who has flown anywhere over Thanksgiving, or Christmas, in the past 30 years. But it does harbor impending disaster. And the news media just love that.  The TV will be filled with crying babies, distraught teenagers, and pictures of long lines.

Seasoned travelers will do one of many things:

1. Take a cab or limo to the airport -- At the cost to park of $20 a day, if you are going more than four days, its probably cheaper to take a cab, both ways.
2. Have a friend drop them off or pick them up.
3. Reserve a space on line -- virtually all airports are represented at a number of sites -- Key in "Parking" on Google and see what pops up.
4. Simply drive to the airport and park in an available space. My spies tell me that at virtually all airports there is parking available. It may not be the most convenient, but its there. Off airport parking is available, too.  But its probably important to plan ahead and be sure you can find those little lots around the corner and down the block.
5. Airport hotels are offering park/sleep/fly packages that let you come a day early, leave your car, stay overnight, and be well rested for your flight.

Of course most won't take this advice, and most main stream media won't print it. All those "one flight a decade" folks will jam the airport at the last minute, have far too much luggage, complain about just about everything, and actually be the cause of most late flights. 

Cynic? Nope, just experienced. 

The best solution - have Thanksgiving at your house and let the family come there.

All the best

JVH

Headline: "Free Valet Parking Offered..."

Of course it isn't "free."  Someone is paying the valets, the valet company, the insurance, and paying for the parking space where the cars are going. It is "free" to the parker.

When you read the article, you find that the hospital, in this case, understands. They used the term "complimentary parking," and are promoting this as another service offered visitors and patients at the hospital.

The hospital is in competition with other hospitals in the area and wants to make the experience as good as possible under difficult circumstances. The Valet program is a good idea. I'm sure that folks visiting me during my recent stay would have loved to have their car's handled by a valet, particularly at no cost to them.

However, I don't think that people expect it to be free, and I would suggest that the hospital charge something, if only a minimal amount. That will most likely flush out the ones who would take advantage of the program.

But there you go.

JVH

A Very Delicate Subject -- Homeless

Dallas is having a problem. The Homeless are camping out in public and private parking lots around the city. What to do? The police are "moving them along" after complaints from merchants and residents. They are ending up in a church parking lot, or "safe zone" provided by the church. Not good PR for the city.

Commentator and talk show host Michael Medved is very harsh. Arrest them and put them in jail. He sees this as a "tough love" approach. I have thought about it and it makes some sense.

First of all, homeless folks usually have alternatives. There are churches, city programs and the like which provide a roof and a bed. However many simply don't "want" to avail themselves of these programs. They feel that they have the freedom to camp out wherever they like. Even if its on someone's private property.

Of course there are hard core homeless that are mentally unbalanced. They should definitely be institutionalized and helped. The others should understand that in our society there is no room for folks who don't take care of themselves.  There are a myriad of public and private programs that give folks a leg up. We are in a time when many employers can't find workers and in some cities, burger flippers are making $20 and hour.

I know it seems heartless, but while they are incarcerated they can be given three squares, can get cleaned up, and then can be exposed to all the programs and help that our society can offer. Sure, when they are homeless, they can't get a job because they are on the bottom of life's ladder. However self motivation can help. Sure they may not "want" to flip burgers, but when they consider the alternative, perhaps it really isn't so bad. 

Just my ramblings....

JVH

When Will They Ever Learn, Fresno, That Is.

The Peter Paul and Mary song of the sixties was prophetic for Fresno this past week. Here's the story.

The City had meters in the Chinatown area for years until 1999 when they were removed.  They found that for some strange reason, employees and government workers were taking all the spots so they put the meters back in 2001. Now six years later, the merchants are crying and want the meters removed again.  The city, as an experiment, is taking them out.

It would seem to me that they already did the experiment in 1999 and the result was so bad they had to replace the meters two years later. What has changed that makes anyone think that this time it will be different. Isn't one definition of insanity doing the same thing over and over expecting to get a different result?

It seems to me that the problem is that the city collects about a million dollars a year from parking but the local merchants see none of it.  If the million was put back into the neighborhoods with new sidewalks, street lights, events, parks, and the like, I wonder if people would come down to the area in droves, whether or not they had to pay.

As for the concern that people have to "feed the meters."  It seems to me that rates could be set so that feeding was unnecessary. Maybe sell parking in hour increments, so they can buy 3 or 4 hours after hours or around lunch.

Of course upgrading the meters to take credit cards and the like would help, too.

Lots of alternatives, rather than just doing the same thing that failed a six years ago.

Thanks to Mark Rimmer for pointing out this disaster in the making.

Changes at the IPI -- Kim Jackson Resigns

I got word this AM that Kim Jackson, Executive Director of the International Parking Institute, has tendered her resignation. She has taken a position as director of Parking and Transportation Services at Princeton University effective the first of  the year.

This comes at a time of great activity at the IPI. They are finalizing through their new five year plan, are working hard on their upcoming trade show in Dallas, and have other training and publishing projects in the mill. Kim has been the driving force behind most of these activities.

This is an opportunity for the IPI. My suggestion, for what its worth, is that they appoint an "interim" Executive Director and then go on a national search. Spend some money and find a professional to run the organization who has experience in growing and building these types of institutions. They need to take a deep breath, solve the immediate issue, and then take some time and do the search right.

The IPI is important to the industry. They need to fill the leadership void created by Kim's departure with experience, talent, and vision.

Kim has done a yeoman's job stepping in upon the departure of David Ivey. The organization has moved forward with its agenda of change and revitalization.  One can only wish her the best in her new endeavor.

JVH

Dr Joyce Brothers on Parking Rage

This is rich. A NY dentist lost it when a driver blocked his access to a parking lot. Unfortunately this was in front of a TV studio and a camera crew had just walked out on its way to an assignment. Its all on tape. Check it out here.

You may have to scroll through a few of these videos but its worth the search. There is the dentist's side of the story, but frankly, after the push he gave the girl in the video, I didn't have a lot of sympathy.

Dr. Brothers had an interesting comment. She says that most of this rage is based on some other factors in the person's life and it becomes manifested in the parking rage. In other words the dentist in question was taking his frustration out on a minor problem, but the frustration was major. Her comment is telling "I wouldn't want to be a patient of this dentist at this time."

Is there anything we can do about this, as an industry. I doubt it.  There have been incidents of such rage world wide.  But when in consider the literally hundreds of millions of people who interact over parking spaces daily, a few a day isn't a lot. Put it in perspective. Some guy loses it and suddenly the world is focused on "Parking Rage."

We live in a video world. Remember one thing our dentist friend forgot. Don't every do anything in public you don't want to see on the evening news, or on Youtube.

JVH

How Naive can someone be

I got a call yesterday from a businessman in a major city in the US. He told me that he owned an off airport operation and had been bilked by his employees. He was frustrated and couldn't believe that the people he had hired and trusted had taken him for a cleaning.

He is not in the parking business but had some land near the airport and decided that this was a cash cow and opened a parking lot. He hired a manager who hired some staff and they were off and running. He would go by weekly and pick up the receipts.  He though it strange that there was very little cash and most of the income was from credit cards. However he had other interests and let the parking operation sort of run itself.

One day he awoke from his slumber to find that his employees were keeping all the cash. He didn't know what to do. He couldn't close since he had hundreds of cars on the lot, he didn't want to go run it himself, and when he threatened his staff, they said that they would walk leaving him high and dry.

When I asked him why he didn't hire a legitimate operator to run it, he said he didn't think it was large enough (300 cars at a major airport). I asked him why he didn't call the cops and he said he considered it. The problem it seems was that he had been distracted by his other interests and when he got back to his parking operation, it was too late.  The inmates were in charge of the asylum and he seemed unable to wrench control back from them.

He has since closed the business, leased the lot to a nearby operation to use as overflow, and now is trying to "get" the employees. 

Parking is not a simple business. It requires more supervision than most businesses. Its complex, but not that complex. You must be hard, you must fire when necessary, and you must, absolutely, keep control of the cash box. There is just too much temptation to put in front of most people without the proper controls in place.

As the Gipper said, trust but verify. My caller trusted by didn't verify and he ended up with a disaster. He is frustrated and angry. And I can sympathize. However it goes to show that as with all businesses, you must, MUST, run the business, not let it run itself.

I started to tell this story to friend in the parking business and he started to laugh. Before I got a paragraph out he said "how much did they take him for?"   Of course it will be difficult to tell, but 300 cars (and the lot was mostly full) at even $10 a day is $3,000 a day. You do the numbers.

A very expensive lesson.

JVH

San Francisco "Going out"

The City of San Francisco is "going out" to bid for revenue control equipment for the 19 city owned garages located throughout the "city by the bay." Don't get too excited yet, equipment vendors. It'll be a while before there is anything definitive on the streets.

My spies in SF tell me that the city is first hiring a consulting firm to write the specs, and then they will put the bid on the street. This is a critical part of the process as just how the specs are written will determine how the equipment is selected and how it will work.

SF has a city ordinance which specifies the types of reports needed.  Its a rather strange ordinance as it allows the folks running the garages to certify that their garage meets the ordinance, without the city having to come in and check.  Are the foxes running the hen house in Baghdad by the bay?

Although virtually all the operators of the nineteen garages have certified they are on compliance, I have it on good authority (read that an equipment vendor) that over half of the garages don't meet the requirements of the ordinance.

If this is how the city runs its current ordinance, how good a job will they do on specifying a set of equipment for the garages, a set of equipment that some say could cost between $15 and $20 million.

They are asking consultants to "bid" on the process of writing the spec and then supervising the installation and training. There are consulting firms out there that have the expertise to take on a job of this magnitude. Although the numbers may be smaller than most airports, the system could be more complex since it involves nineteen separate entities reporting back to possibly three or four different operators and also back to the city. It will most likely involve Pay on Foot, and a complex validation program, in addition to the normal daily and monthly parking operations, most of which are not seen in large airport systems.

I'll keep my eye on this as it progresses.  SF has had many problems getting equipment and software in and running. It has just lost its head of parking and I understand is in a search to find a replacement.

Would it be better to hire the new parking guru for the city and have him or her shepherd the new system? It seems to me that it would. Bringing in someone in the middle of a procurement of such complexity and magnitude could set them up to fail even before they got their first paycheck.

JVH

Half of Laz Parking Sold to the French

Here's the news release:

HARTFORD LAZ Parking is pleased to announce that VINCI Park has purchased a 50% partnership interest in LAZ Parking. VINCI Park, headquartered in Paris, France is the world’s leader in the parking concession business.

VINCI Park operates over one million parking spaces in more than 350 cities and 15 countries throughout the world.  “We strongly believe that LAZ Parking is the best parking operator in the United States. We are excited to partner with LAZ and to help promote the expansion of LAZ Parking throughout the United States, which is consistent with our growth strategy,” said Philippe Princet, VINCI Park Vice President of International Operations.  

LAZ Parking presently operates over 225,000 parking spaces throughout the United States, including such major cities as Boston, New York City, Washington, D.C. Atlanta, Miami, Chicago and Dallas. With over 2,000 employees and operations in 77 U.S.cities, LAZ Parking operates 360 parking facilities under service contracts or long term leases in a wide variety of venues, including city centers, hotels, hospitals, universities, municipalities and various mixed -use projects. 

“The LAZ/VINCI Park partnership will create tremendous opportunities for our clients and our employees,” said Alan Lazowski, Chairman and CEO of LAZ Parking. “We will continue our significant organic growth and expand our platform by acquiring additional parking companies in strategic markets throughout the United States.”

Alan and his crew have become the movers and shakers having just partnered with Morgan Stanley and are running the four garages in Chicago what the merchant bank leased from the Windy City. He has also opened an investment division and I expect we can see more purchases from him in the months to come.

JVH

This is just tooo good

A Texas community has banned private sex parties in private homes. Why -- Morality? Nope -- The traffic and parking congestion they cause. Read it here.

That's it, place the blame on the parking guys, not on the folks that are letting it all hang out. "We have to be good neighbors."

If parking is a problem, why not require that the homeowner provide valet parking or shuttle buses in from the parking lot at the local church....Wellll maybe not the church.

JVH

I wonder if there is a way I can blame the parking patrols for that damn barking dog next door

Comments on a PT Article

In November we ran an interview with parking legends Ray Liesegang and Herb Citrin. I received this comment from a local senior parking manager who learned his trade at their knees:

John,

I thoroughly enjoyed your brief article and interview with Ray Liesegang and Herb Citrin.

During my younger days, I worked as a full-time “Shift Manager” for APCOA at the Los Angeles International Airport (6 days a week) and part-time for Herb’s Valet Parking Service.  During my brief tenure with valet, I learned a lot about valet parking from Herb and his hardworking crew.

In 1977, I left APCOA to work for Ray Liesegang at Century Parking.  To make a long story short, I was enticed back to APCOA, after just a few months, by means of a double promotion with substantial compensation, perks, etc..

One of the most difficult things I have ever had to do was to inform Ray of my  decision to return to APCOA.  When I met privately with Ray and explained the details to him, he was a perfect gentleman, a real class-act.  He said, “Bob, you are a young man with a bright future in the parking business.  The offer is too good to pass up.  I understand, don’t worry about it.  I would do the same thing.”

Both Herb and Ray are tough but fair, extremely hardworking, creative, ethical individuals that are true icons in the West Coast parking industry.  Both gentlemen mentored me for a brief period of time and for that, I am truly grateful.

Bob Hindle
Parking Concepts, Inc

Chicago Garage on the Block

The value of parking garages, particularly in downtown cores, seems to be skyrocketing. 201 Madison in Chicago's loop, is on the block for upwards of $120,000,000, That's over $102,000 a space. The garage is 10 years old and was bought by a consortium including John Hammerschlag, for $52,000,000 five years ago. John told Crain's Chicago Business that his group is in no hurry to sell.

This facility has value -- its pay on foot, has some long term tenants on the ground floor, and can be expanded another three stories with parking or commercial/condos.  I think even at the the $120 million price its a good deal for long term investment. Central Chicago parking facilities fill daily during the week, and there just isn't a lot of dirt left in the area for more garages.

JVH

Oh Come on, Its time to get real

The UK parking enforcement gurus are simply off the mark. Read this article.

It seems that they are giving tickets to folks who are loading and unloading cars and merchants going about their daily business. This is patently absurd.

Of course the most hated folks in the UK are parking enforcement, and for good reason. They use no common sense whatsoever.  The answer "The law says you can't park there, so you get a citation."

Horsefeathers. The enforcement folks need some leeway. This ranks right up there with giving tickets to priests administering last rights and ambulances picking up the sick.

If the parking community wants to build a consensus with the parking public, we need to be consistent, but fair. We need to be able to know when to cite, when to warn, and when to smile and walk away.

If not, we will truly earn the moniker, "Parking Nazis"

JVH

Way to go Calgary

Dale Frasier and his Calgary Parking Authority have the right idea -- Today they launched a new program titled "Size does matter." Unlike many other cities, Calgary is giving reduced rate parking to SMALL cars. Something your's truly has been touting for years.

None of this "Support your local electric car" for the folks in Canada's Oil City. These folks have the right idea. If your car is less than three meters and change, you can apply for a permit and get a 25 percent discount on your parking charges. Their new parking systems allows this.

Dale says that the slogan brought out the press and I'll be getting details and a few pictures in a week or so.

This is going to apply to motorcycles, too.

It just makes sense.  How your car is propelled should make no difference in your parking charges, however how much real estate your car takes up should.  Minis, Smart Cars, and others easily fit the criteria.

Its just great to see a community that follows logic instead of PC nonsense when it comes to parking.

All the best Dale and Calgary, keep it up.

JVH

In Case of Emergency

Here's a good idea:

We all carry (I hope) our mobile phones with names & numbers stored in its memory but nobody, other than ourselves, knows which of these numbers belong to our closest family or friends.

If we were to be involved in an accident or were taken ill, the people attending us would have our mobile phone but wouldn't know who to call. Yes, there are hundreds of numbers stored but which one is the contact person in case of an emergency? Hence this "ICE" (In Case of Emergency) Campaign

The concept of "ICE" is catching on quickly. It is a method of contact during emergency situations. As cell phones are carried by the majority of the population, all you need to do is store the number of a contact person or persons who should be contacted during emergency under the name "ICE" ( In Case Of Emergency).

The idea was thought up by a paramedic who found that when he went to the scenes of accidents, there were always mobile phones with patients, but they didn't know which number to call. He therefore thought that it would be a good idea if there was a nationally recognized name for this purpose. In an emergency situation, Emergency Service personnel and hospital Staff would be able to quickly contact the right person by simply dialing the number you have stored as "ICE."

For more than one contact name simply enter ICE1, ICE2 and ICE3 etc. A great idea that will make a difference!

Let's spread the concept of ICE by storing an ICE number in our Mobile phones today!

Please forward this. It won't take too many "forwards" before everybody will know about this It really could save your life, or put a loved one's mind at rest .

ICE will speak for you when you are not able to.

The cops do use cell phones to try to find folks -- I left my phone on my seat one evening and about an hour later got a call from the police. Seems they simply hit redial, got my wife, and she told them where I was. I then went out and moved my car which had rolled down the street into some bushes.  Didn't set the brake.

The ICE idea is the best, though. Its s constant. I would do that, and also list my emergency contact as first in the address book by putting an "A" in front of the ICE ie AIEC - emergency contact - 555 1212.

Do em both

JVH

Boise Boise Boise....

The problems with parking at Boise State are legend. folks come very early and park in the neighborhoods and cause havoc with locals land owners. According to this article  The local enforcement folks are changing rules and putting up signs. But to no avail.

I know my solution -- and so do you. Charge for onstreet parking during games.  Have someone out there with an apron and charge $10 bucks for a space, or $15, or $20. If you have a permit, you can park, and if you don't you get towed. Put the money back in to the local parks and rec budget and provide more parking for the local recreation areas. I assume there is parking on campus and there's not enough. So charge for that, too. Charge Charge Charge.  Keep raising the rates until car pooling seems a reasonable alternative or that shuttles in from those lots outside of town look more attractive.

This is a no brainer, Boise. People come for the game and to see the 19th ranked Broncos demolish their latest victim. They don't come to park. And they are willing (after a few complaints) to pay for that parking.

Nuff Said.

JVH

Scofflaws in Ft. Wayne

Ft. Wayne, IN, has a problem. They have 11,500 unpaid tickets totaling more than a third of a million dollars. What to do? What to do?

My take is that with any crime, the further you get from the moment, the less likely you are to resolve the violation. The older the tickets are, the harder they are to collect. This means enforcement, and enforcement from day one.

What if a person was given a month to pay or contest their citation, and after that, their car was fair game. Give a towing or booting company a list and let them have at it. I'm sure the costs could be covered by the person wanting to get their car back.

Would there be problems and complaints. Sure and if the private firms got too aggressive, boot them out and find someone who understands. However if you are going to charge for parking citations, they make no sense if you don't enforce.  Sending letters doesn't hack it. One reminder, and then booth. My guess is that number of unpaid citations in Ft. Wayne and elsewhere would plummet if people knew that the alternative was a long, bureaucratic conversation in a towing yard at the edge of town with someone named Spike.

Just my humble thoughts

JVH

Some confusion and a bit of defense

Peter Guest, our columnist of all things Non North American, was a bit defensive this month as he had a medical issue and compared his experience with mine. From what I could understand he had all the benefits of a state run health system with the "operating theater" availability the only that that set the date for his surgery. He noted that he would rather have a medico set the urgency of his surgery than an actuary. (This has been edited from his column, I felt the field of battle should be here on the blog, not in PT.)

First, I'm happy that Peter came through his event and is doing well.  However he should understand that my jokes aside, dealing with the bureaucracy of an HMO was for me minor. The professionals who ran the surgical and hospital teams did so without much if any intervention from me. The doctor and I selected the date, and that was the date that my surgery took place. I was fortunate enough to have "elective" surgery -- that is, I wasn't in a life threatening situation, but nevertheless, the procedure was on my schedule, not an actuary.

Insurance companies are "for profit" organizations and need to be certain that one's stay in hospital, or as an outpatient, for that matter, is appropriate. Overwhelming emergency rooms or doctor's offices for sore throats or cut fingers is absurd. But its a medical staff that makes that decision, not a numbers guy.

Of course there is free market pressure and there should be more. If I had any clue what my operation cost (and I don't) I'm sure I would have perhaps 'shopped' the hospital to find not only the best, but the one that met my financial needs as well. The cost of medical care in the US (and UK) is absurd. Stories about people waiting months for operations and seeing consultants in the UK are in every paper. The fact that I had a choice of three "operating theaters" on the date of my surgery and the biggest concern was which was more convenient for my family visits 

I have no complaints. The system worked as it should. I had my surgery when it was needed and follow up and postoperative care has been outstanding.

There are stories about national health care for all, in the UK and Canada, which are legend. I'm glad Peter had a good experience.

JVH

Yes, I am Biased

I reader reacted to my comments about Portland and their on street equipment here. Basically he said I was biased toward vendors because they paid my salary. He's right. I am biased and they do pay my salary but the two aren't related. I thought I should be clear -- Here is my response.

You are correct, Dan,  I have a bias toward the vendors, having been one for 20 years. 

Don't get me wrong, much of the problem vendors have is that they have set expectation levels far too high. Its their problem with which to deal.

However, I stand by my post. Folks expect parking software to work perfectly, and expect to pay a pittance for it. They are willing to pay hundreds of thousands for database software, or millions for banking software, or more for software to run manufacturing plants, or shopping centers or grocery stores. They are also willing to pay for ongoing "support" for that software, which includes fixing bugs that we existent at the time of purchase.

However when a parking vendor shows up and charges what they need to charge for software, all hell breaks loose. One assumes that one should be able to go to the local Comp USA and pick up some software like MS Word or Excel and be able to run your garage or parking operation.

This is a customer education problem. 

Biased, how can I not be?  I have never said that I wasn't biased.  I have a bias against parking operators who don't do their jobs properly, but support them because they are supposed to do it with fees that are ridiculous. I have a bias in favor of vendors that are required to be perfect in the face of users that refuse to even begin to learn how to use the systems they have bought. I have a bias against vendors who don't support their equipment, and for years have said that every system I have seen works in some situations and doesn't in others.

I have a bias in favor of end users who take the time to learn about the equipment they are buying, and expect their employees to do so, too, and I have a bias against end users who expect equipment and software to solve their problems. These are tools. They are not solutions.

A quick story:  We did a survey a few years ago on revenue control equipment. Someone wrote in and said that a Federal Scan system was the worst piece of junk he had ever had. The next day someone wrote in and said that a Federal Scan system was clearly the best piece of equipment he had ever used.  They were both hospitals, both in similar climates, age of the equipment was the same. What was the difference?

I did some detective work and found that in the first case, the customer wanted an Amano system (he was familiar with it) but was required to take the Scan system because a contractor had included it with the construction of a garage. From what I could tell, the end user simply didn't want the system to work and was looking for a reason to replace it. Frankly I think he should have done so.

The other end user had done considerable study. He had written a spec, visited factories, and decided the Federal system was best for his application (My guess is that either would have worked .) He then embraced his system and made it work.

The point is that most systems will do a job for which they are intended, if the owners work with the vendor AND installing company to succeed.

I have probably seen more parking equipment, played with it, and talked about it in detail than anyone on the planet. I have been given demonstrations, talked to end users, and heard the good the bad and the ugly. In every case there are mitigating circumstances.

Don't get me wrong -- vendors have their warts. They are late in delivery, software goes out untested, commitments are made that can't possibly be met. A vendor fails at this airport, but is a grand success at that. After the fact the reasons are obvious. But no one, the consultant, the vendor, the installer, or the owner were prescient enough to see what was going to happen.

Sorry, Dan, but you are right. I have no pretense of being unbiased. Never have, never will.  But until someone comes along and shows me where I'm wrong, I'll continue down that path.

All the best

JVH

By the way, the marketplace has a way of dealing with those that don't live up to their promises. There are a number, a large number, of companies that were around when we started PT a decade ago that are just memories.  Can you name a few? 

Fighting in Philly -- Governor is "Shocked"

I just love it when a politician takes Claude Rains' line from Casablanca, you know -- "I'm shocked SHOCKED to find gambling at Rick's" -- just as he is handed his winnings...

As usual most of the hew and cry in Philly is about money. Seems that the parking authority has raised salaries and increased its staff, but the amount of money going to the local schools and the city has remained constant. They are calling for an audit.

The Governor is "shocked" at the political patronage (right) and politicians are staking out positions on both sides of the issue.

But as you read this article you find that as with most government issues, its all about the money, and who gets it. The schools say they are due more and it should come from the piece that goes to the city, the city can't because they say that the amount they get covers a budget shortfall, and everyone says all the governor has to do is write a letter and all will be well.

Oh, please.  Whenever there is a lot of money and the government is involved, even a quasi government like a parking authority, an eagle eye has to be kept on the entire operation. This is particularly true when the folks running the operation have an (R) or a (D) after their names that that party affiliation is more important than running a tight ship. 

The Ds were thrown out a few years ago to "clean up the parking authority" and now the  Rs are being accused of the same or worse.

I reiterate what I said earlier -- lets get the politics out of parking and focus on caring for this valuable resource. Can you imagine what our parks would look like if they were run by one or the other of our political parties.

I have no clue what the "truth" is in Philadelphia but it really makes no difference. The parking operation is run by politicians and its awash with money, and that always causes a problem.

JVH

An elegant solution

Dale Fraser and his Calgary Parking Authority have a bit of a problem. The public is complaining about the new pay and display system that is being installed in the downtown area. You know the drill. "Can't find the machines, don't know how it works, confusing, really don't want to pay anyway."

The solution:  Give them one free pass.

In other words, the first citation you receive will be voided. It makes for good PR, allows the public to have a training period, and actually allows the authority to find out how many people REALLY are having a problem.

Good call Dale

JVH