Metro Considers Expanding Paid Park-and-Ride to Eight More Stations

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Next week, the Metro board will be considering a staff recommendation to implement paid park-and-ride at eight additional rail stations. Metro currently has 15 all-paid park-and-ride station lots. Most Metro station parking will remain free to drivers.

Current free parking stations expected to convert to paid parking are:

• Blue Line: Wardlow, Willow
• Expo Line: Expo/Crenshaw
• Gold Line: Arcadia, Indiana, Downtown Azusa, Duarte
• Green Line: Hawthorne/Lennox

As many Streetsblog readers know, there is generally a high cost for free parking, though it is not paid by the individual driver. For free park-and-ride, costs are born by the transit agency, hence paid by the general public and by fare-paying mostly low-income transit riders. Charging for park-and-ride is good for fairness and for the environment.

Under Metro’s adopted Supportive Transit Parking Program Master Plan, free parking stations that are more than 90 percent occupied are subject to parking management interventions, including TAP validation (making sure people who park actually ride Metro) and all-paid parking. Staff report that all eight of the above stations are consistently over 90 percent occupied.

The staff proposal would increase the existing parking management contract with L&R Auto Parks (dba Joe’s Auto Parks) by $1.6 million. Metro staff anticipate that the additional paid park-and-ride stations will generate $1.9 million over the 28 months remaining on the contract, so overall Metro is projected to receive approximately $300,000 in net revenue.

The parking proposal was scheduled to be heard in committee today, though that meeting was canceled. It will likely be on the July 26 board meeting agenda.