Since the eco- mobility proposal was announced at Council I have been receiving the rudest emails from guess who? The commuters that park for free on the residential streets of Downtown Halifax! Yes, they think that it is their God Given Right to park for over 40 hours a week for free on Publically OWNED streets.
Now let me explain to you the rationale for this proposal so you may understand why this is a good proposal for ALL residents of HRM. How many people complain that Transit is not to their liking in HRM? Many complain that it is unreliable, slow, doesn't have the correct routes to accommodate their needs, and not operating at the required hours.
So how to we fix this issue? Money is needed for more buses, operating costs, bus terminals and alike. Would you like to pay more taxes to have better service? Many residents have and say no. “We pay enough taxes.” “Why should I pay for something that doesn’t work?” “Fix it first and then I’ll use it.” HRM has not received fair treatment regarding transit from the Federal Government either. So how do we raise money? Who should pay to help fix this transportation nightmare?
Other cities impose parking fees on residential streets to generate money for Transit. Why are we so different? Why shouldn’t those that clog up the streets, cause traffic congestion and are not willing to carpool to help in lessening the carbon footprint of our municipality pay for parking? These funds would go towards fixing our Transit problems and help us build a strong transportation system that EVERYONE could use.
People think transit isn’t cool. That only those without cars, which are low income, use it. That is not the case. In fact, if you ever travel to cities outside of Nova Scotia you would see very prominent people using public transit because it is the fast way to get around. While in New York (on my own dime) visiting friends, I shared a subway car with the star of Muriel’s Wedding! See Public Transit is for EVERYBODY except for here.
Interesting enough, the residents of the downtown residential areas have been asking for this type of policy for 10 years. They have paid high taxes, been tolerant of all aspects of urban life to help reduce the carbon foot print and to keep our district thriving.
I listened to Q104 this am and heard Bobby Mac, BJ and Jessica bashing this idea because of the hours they work. Guess what.... your studio is not downtown! Guess what?? You have a huge parking lot in front of your studio... it doesn’t affect you.
One individual that sent me rude emails bashed the idea because of the hours his wife works... again, you decided to live where you live and no one has asked you to park where you park. That is and will be your decision. We all have to stop this “all about me” attitude and start working towards a solution.
Rant Done
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2 comments:
Right on Dawn! It is about time that the wishes of us urbanites are heared! My street has been a tow away zone for the past month and I think it is fantastic that people have to go elsewhere to park or use transit!
Hi Dawn
For sure, the piece of pavement in front of someone's home is for the residents in that area, not a free parking spot for a downtown located business that doesn't provide employee parking. (No, I don't live downtown.)
However the bus thing is also true. I live on the Bedford Hwy and there HAS to be more "fast buses" that take the short route into the city core. Most of the buses take a painfully long route. And they are so packed most of the time, that I stand up most of the way. STUPID.
Make the bus a consumer friendly experience instead of treating it like a "social service" and maybe we'll show up for the ride.
Let me bring my darn coffee in a take out cup, play some nice music and don't cram us in like cattle. Get me there in a timely fashion, and if you want downtown to stay alive past 5pm, keep the darm buses running regularly so we can meet for a drink after work and still get home without worring about catching the one bus that hour that you will probably miss!
Collect the money from drivers, but give us something spectacular in return. Leadership means taking risk and trusting that people will follow, not expecting the masses to make great things happen. Individuals will always make decisions for their own immediate needs. Make it hard to drive into the city, but in return make it easy and awesome to take transit. Charge more during rush hours for transit and make it worth my time.
thanks Dawn, yer awesome.
Carol
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