Parking trial doesn’t deal with root issue

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This article was published 26/10/2022 (221 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

New parking restrictions have been implemented in Lord Roberts on a trial basis in large part to address the overuse of street parking by Winnipeg Transit employees – but they may not solve the problem.

As originally proposed, the parking trial would have seen two-hour time limits installed on all streets in Lord Roberts north of Kylemore Avenue. However, the city determined through an online survey that support for the trial is concentrated among residents nearest the Transit garage. As a result, only Hethrington Avenue and Arnold Avenue have had new, time-limited parking installed.

According to the summary report of the survey, respondents felt that “Transit drivers parking on residential streets while at work is the root cause of parking concerns in the area, and that this is the issue that needs to be addressed.” Suggestions provided included increasing the size of the Transit lot and making parking in the lot more affordable or free for drivers.

The city rebuts that in 2019 the annual average vacancy rate for Transit’s employee lots in Lord Roberts was 19 per cent and that employee parking is affordable. In a statement, the city specified that the rate is set by the Winnipeg Parking Authority at $2.68 for a 12-hour period.

However, ATU 1505 – the union local representing Winnipeg Transit workers – says available spots in the daily parking lots at the Fort Rouge facility can be hard to come by and that it can take upwards of five years for an employee to get on a list for a monthly parking pass.

Furthermore, the lots which offer parking strictly through the PayByPhone app are prohibitive for employees who do not have mobile phones or data to access the app, ATU said. For those who can use the app, it can be challenging to anticipate a delay or renew parking remotely while driving a bus.

The Parking Authority maintains tight enforcement of the lots at the Transit garage, ATU added, including late at night, when the lots are virtually empty.

ATU therefore expects the new residential parking restrictions will cause some employees to simply park farther back from the garage.

“There’s inadequate parking for our members there. So sometimes you need to park on the street,” they said.

The city says it will conduct a mid-trial review to gauge impacts such as these as well as community support.

For more information on the parking trial, visit winnipeg.ca/lordrobertstraffic.

Tracy Groenewegen
South Osborne community correspondent

Tracy Groenewegen is a community correspondent for South Osborne. She can be reached at tracy.groenewegen@gmail.com

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