Believe it or not, parking’s effects are as far-reaching as any important policy. A community’s parking options shape its culture, economics, and environment. It’s a dynamic and complicated topic: parking can reflect (or even spark) a neighborhood’s gentrifying tensions. It can empower or hamper under-served communities, like the disabled or elderly; it can create or take away billions of dollars in revenue. Parking effects pollution, safety, wealth, and, of course, accessibility. At MyParkingSign, we monitor and report the latest happenings in parking, be they bureaucratic, like increasing fines, technological, like a parking new app, or instructional, like how to manage parking legally and efficiently.
News
New Research: Your Most Bike-Friendly States, and the Scarcity of Female Commuter Cyclists
9/28/2012 — BikeGuard: The Free Bike Registry, has just released information on commuter cycling by state and gender. Here are their key findings: Washington, D.C. has the highest percentage of bike commuters, at 3.13 percent Arkansas has a dismal .06 percent. Women rarely bike to work: 74 percent of bike commuters nationally are male, in […]
Tailgaters vs. people with disabilities: A game-day battle
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln is facing charges that handicapped parking was rented to donors on Cornhuskers’ game days (photo by Kent Sievers, The Omaha World-Herald). 9/18/12 — Whether it’s the NFL or a local university or high school, the most hotly contested showdown this fall might be tailgaters v. people with disabilities. On game day, […]
5 Smartphone Apps for Safe & Savvy Driving
The iPhone 5, released September 12th, 2012. (Photo via Apple) September 14, 2012 — The iPhone5 launched this week, and according to Apple’s promotional video, “when you think about your iPhone, it is probably the object that you use most in your life.” There’s some truth to this statement: like any good smartphone, the iPhone […]
Lessons from Seattle: How Signage Reduces Parking Fines
Signs like these make parking regulations clear and easy to follow . September 10, 2012 — In Seattle, a private parking company was recently fined $55,000 for issuing misleading parking tickets to unsuspecting citizens. These signs promise a flexible and feasible appeals process, which, as Assistant Attorney General Jake Bernstein points out, “is murky at best.”
Blimps, Billboards, and the Art of Focused Driving
Our morning “blimps” of New York. September 6, 2012 — Today, from the windows of our New York offices, a line of blimps promenaded across the skyline, emerging over the harbor heliport and disappearing over Jersey. If there ever was a reason for Lady Liberty to look up, it was this unusual family—two bigger blimps, […]
Electric Cars Get a Boost with BMW Vehicle Sharing Program
BMW board member Ian Robertson and San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee (via BMW). August 27, 2012 — After taking a hit in the form of sign regulation and image, the electric car industry is again resurfacing — with the help of a little car company called BMW. The automobile giant launched its electric car share program […]
Tampa’s Transport Woes, Republican National Convention Edition
Plentiful, largely empty parking lots: an old Tampa Bay tradition (via pleasantfamilyshopping.blogspot.com). August 22, 2012 — When they’re picking locations for their quadrennial national conventions, do the two major parties look for swing states, in hopes that bringing 50,000 party boffins into town will tilt voters in their favor? Do they look for a sympathetic […]
Your DMV Record Can Predict Your Untimely Death – And Raise Your Premiums
Slow down — for your health, and your wallet RoadTrafficSigns.com. August 21, 2012 — If you’ve got a lead foot, your need for speed could cost you – in more ways than you think. Now add your life insurance company to the list of folks keeping tabs on your driving habits (and what those habits […]
Outsourced Enforcement Proves Effective, Doubles Atlanta Parking Revenue in 2011
Stricter parking enforcement protects resident parking and ensures parking efficiency (via MyParkingSign). August 16, 2011 — Atlanta, Georgia, is seeing the benefit of privatizing parking — over 8 million dollars in benefit. Three years ago, Atlanta’s parking system was losing the city respect and money as lax enforcement and lack of parking personnel affected the city’s […]
The Top Ten Worst and Best States for Pedestrian Safety
The number of pedestrian accidents and fatalities varies with location (via PedestrianSigns). August 13, 2012 — The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration just released 2010 Data on pedestrian safety. Pedestrian fatalities accounted for about 13% of all traffic-related deaths in 2010, amounting to 4280 deaths in the United States. This is a four percent increase […]
Maryland Introduces Stricter Driver Testing
State regulations make it tougher for teens to get driver’s licenses (via Delmarvanow). August 10, 2012 — Tougher state regulations in Maryland regarding driver license requirements are making it more difficult for teens to be certified. Before this, students had to wait six months before taking the driver’s test. During that time span, they had to have at least […]