Meter Rate Changes Behind Schedule

With the original deadline already passed, work crews seem to be struggling to complete rate changes on parking meters in a timely manner.

Originally, Chicago Parking Meter LLC had set a deadline of March 9th to have all 36,000 plus meters adjusted for the higher rates and the decals outlining the changes to days and hours operation affixed to each meter head.

But a spot check of parking meters at locations around the city shows that the new lessee seems to have woefully underestimated how long the process would take. While many meters have been changed over, there appears to be an equal amount of meters still sporting the old meter rates and operation days and hours.

No one from the company would go on the record with even an approximate deadline, despite a multitude of calls and e-mails sent to both Morgan Stanley and LAZ Parking management.

"There's no firm date at this time," is all this writer could get out of Morgan Stanley PR spokesperson Carissa Ramirez.

Crews of 10-12 meter technicians have been spotted along Irving Park Road and Milwaukee Ave. over the past few days, slowly working their way down the street.

When one meter technician, who refused to be identified, was asked about an estimated deadline, he just laughed and said, "hopefully by April."

Considering there are more than 36,000 parking meters citywide, the original three week timetable for completing the meter conversion seems outrageously unrealistic when one considers that 1,500 meters a day would have to be changed to meet that goal.

Based on simple observation of how many meters are changed, our uneducated guess is that the conversion process will be finished by mid to late April and, in a worst case scenario, could take until early May. This makes it a full five months from when the lease deal was approved to begin by the Chicago City Council to the final completion of meter rate changes.

In the meantime, driver confusion seems to be high, judging by the volume of e-mails The Expired Meter receives.

And the confusion is not limited to drivers, as one reader reported being ticketed for an expired meter at a meter which still had the Monday-Saturday decals on its head.

It is important that drivers just take the time to read each meter very carefully and act accordingly.

Check out The Expired Meter for even more information and advice about parking, fighting parking tickets and red light tickets in Chicago.

Comments

[LadyJ]

MonteMalone-- the city no longer has anything to do with it.!..it is privatized now, because no one was paying attention.....the city sold us all out. People don't seem to get it and really don't know what's coming.....

Just think if you were some working person in a congested neighborhood who commutes during the day and who needs to park on a major street overnight, like Clark or Lasalle?? No longer can they park there....so where are all these people going to park? Are they going to have to wake up several times a night to run out and feed the meter? The aldermen and Mayor didn't think about all the different ways this deal is going to hurt business, hurt residents and hurt tourism. The whole thing is so depressing to watch....

[montemalone]

I wonder what the fine print says in that contract. Is the city responsible if revenue doesn't meet a certain level?
Clark St. (Sandburg Terr.) is lined with newly replaced meters at newly raised rates, and most are now empty, whereas before the increase they were always full.
Where are the cars parking now?

[Roelof]

This will be another blow for neighborhood businesses. A group of us tried to park on North Halsted last Sunday. Rates had gone up to 25 cents per 15 minutes, but it wasn't clear which meter belonged to which space. Since we didn't have the change for two hours anyway, we left and went where parking is free: Evanston. Judging from the number of empty spaces (about a third were available during Sunday brunch -- when does THAT ever happen) a lot of people did the same. Next time, we won't even bother making the trip. We'll just head straight to Evanston.