Comments on: Park ‘n Whine http://www.acalgaryblog.com/2009/05/25/pay-n-whine/ life, love, & libations Tue, 27 Dec 2011 23:25:34 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Marshall http://www.acalgaryblog.com/2009/05/25/pay-n-whine/comment-page-1/#comment-46 Marshall Thu, 28 May 2009 23:35:27 +0000 http://www.acalgaryblog.com/?p=220#comment-46 You and I see eye to eye on a lot. Quite frankly the fee is minimal but it's the actual transit system that sucks. If you want to see it done well look at Greater Vancouver's system. Now there's one that works. I live in the burbs close to work. Roughly a 10 minute drive. According to transit the fastest way to get there would be three buses for over an hour commute time! If it was a park and Ride it's be about half that. My coworker lives across town near MRC and it takes him two buses and a train and less time to do the commute. 5 times the distance (easily) in less time?! This makes no sense. I could also take two buses and a train ride but then my trip is even longer. I don't think it's so much the pay to park I have the issue with as much as it is the entire system. Which is why I CHOOSE to drive. I would love to do transit and if I worked downtown I would...but from one burb I another it makes no sense. Maybe the city should look at investing the cash from parking into some real planners. Get it right and do it well. You and I see eye to eye on a lot. Quite frankly the fee is minimal but it’s the actual transit system that sucks. If you want to see it done well look at Greater Vancouver’s system. Now there’s one that works. I live in the burbs close to work. Roughly a 10 minute drive. According to transit the fastest way to get there would be three buses for over an hour commute time! If it was a park and Ride it’s be about half that. My coworker lives across town near MRC and it takes him two buses and a train and less time to do the commute. 5 times the distance (easily) in less time?! This makes no sense. I could also take two buses and a train ride but then my trip is even longer. I don’t think it’s so much the pay to park I have the issue with as much as it is the entire system. Which is why I CHOOSE to drive. I would love to do transit and if I worked downtown I would…but from one burb I another it makes no sense.

Maybe the city should look at investing the cash from parking into some real planners. Get it right and do it well.

]]> By: Roy http://www.acalgaryblog.com/2009/05/25/pay-n-whine/comment-page-1/#comment-44 Roy Tue, 26 May 2009 22:17:51 +0000 http://www.acalgaryblog.com/?p=220#comment-44 I totally agree with your points. However, I do think that there was a problem with how it was implemented. They just said it will go towards future transit initiatives. This is very vague. I would have liked to see them say specifically what the money will be put towards. I am an inner city dweller as well, but when I couldn't afford to live inner-city had a house in the burbs, I didn't find walking to my closest bus stop to be that close at all. If you want to encourage people to use the bus system rather than driving to the train station, parking fees is a start, but the bus system also needs to be improved. The issue is that people think the money is going into the pockets of the government rather than actually benefiting the service that they're paying in to. I totally agree with your points. However, I do think that there was a problem with how it was implemented. They just said it will go towards future transit initiatives. This is very vague. I would have liked to see them say specifically what the money will be put towards.

I am an inner city dweller as well, but when I couldn’t afford to live inner-city had a house in the burbs, I didn’t find walking to my closest bus stop to be that close at all. If you want to encourage people to use the bus system rather than driving to the train station, parking fees is a start, but the bus system also needs to be improved.

The issue is that people think the money is going into the pockets of the government rather than actually benefiting the service that they’re paying in to.

]]> By: sc http://www.acalgaryblog.com/2009/05/25/pay-n-whine/comment-page-1/#comment-43 sc Tue, 26 May 2009 17:55:14 +0000 http://www.acalgaryblog.com/?p=220#comment-43 "Why should parking at the Park ‘n Ride be free? Or as close to free as possible?" simple. because whiny, entitled calgarians have had it that way forever. god forbid we have a user-pay system or that these whiners try and think outside of the "car-culture" box. change is bad. it hurts. thats what the majority think. all of this wont matter in the very near future when gasoline is back up around $1.50/L - people wont be able to afford to drive as often or as far and taking the bus from your immediate neighbourhood will suddenly make economic sense. “Why should parking at the Park ‘n Ride be free? Or as close to free as possible?”

simple. because whiny, entitled calgarians have had it that way forever. god forbid we have a user-pay system or that these whiners try and think outside of the “car-culture” box. change is bad. it hurts. thats what the majority think.

all of this wont matter in the very near future when gasoline is back up around $1.50/L – people wont be able to afford to drive as often or as far and taking the bus from your immediate neighbourhood will suddenly make economic sense.

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