By ALEX SILVERMAN
@AlexSilverman
KIRO Radio

It won't help you find cheaper street spots, but Seattle has a new way to get drivers to downtown parking garages.

Mayor McGinn flipped the ceremonial switch at Westlake Plaza Thursday morning, activating a series of electronic signs that will provide drivers with real-time downtown parking information.

"A significant amount of the congestion downtown is actually people circling downtown looking for parking," McGinn said. "This has been done in other cities around the country and around the globe with really positive effects, so we're happy to bring it here."

The system consists of real-time electronic signs, which will display the number of available spaces in 6 participating garages. Other static signs will aid drivers in locating those garages. "It's high tech, it's cool, it's new, and they're beautiful signs. I really think this is going to work to help our downtown be more accessible," said Kate Joncas, president of the Downtown Seattle Association.

What the new signs will not do, however, is help drivers find street parking, which is typically cheaper than a garage spot. Tim Lomax, a traffic management engineer with Texas A&M University, says the system will be most beneficial to tourists who are looking for the most convenient parking option. "The tourist traffic in downtown Seattle has got to be confused as to how to find parking," Lomax said. "When folks who work downtown get caught behind someone who doesn't know where he's going, that generates frustration for the locals."

As far as whether drivers will pay extra for the convenience of a garage, Lomax says it will sort itself out over time. "There will be people who don't trust the system, who figure the downtown parking owners are trying to generate money," he said.

"Certainly managing access to parking is a solution to downtown traffic problems," Lomax said.