New ways to park in Tacoma coming soon
Aug 6, 2024, 8:46 AM | Updated: 9:00 am
Street parking near downtown Tacoma. (Photo courtesy of the City of Tacoma)
(Photo courtesy of the City of Tacoma)
Significant changes to parking in Tacoma could be coming after the city council reviewed a traffic ordinance that attempts to update and amend the city’s municipal code regarding parking.
The proposed changes are three-fold, focusing on permit-only parking zones, mobile-application parking payments and obstruction of bike lanes.
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Permit-only parking zones
The first change Tacoma Council members are weighing is the creation and enforcement of permit parking zones in non-residential areas of the city, primarily the business districts.
Tacoma established several “no-parking” areas to block large vehicles, like RVs and big commercial cars, from using up curb space indefinitely. However, business owners are arguing the ordinance will help Tacoma’s business districts and encourage more patrons while additionally making things easier for employees and daily users.
If passed, the permit-only parking zones would be modeled off the city’s residential parking program, according to The News Tribune.
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Drivers violating the permit parking zones could be fined $30.
Mobile-application parking payments
The city’s current parking code fails to provide any information or guidance regarding mobile parking payment options. In the current parking ordinance, drivers are required to display proof of payment on the driver’s or curbside window from a mobile parking station. But mobile parking stations don’t print receipts.
“The code is just kind of silent to that,” Eric Huseby, parking services manager for Tacoma, told The News Tribune. “It’s more just a clean-up than anything, just to add in mobile payment as an acknowledged transaction in our system.”
Under the ordinance, drivers won’t need to display proof of payment if they paid using the mobile app. The code update would make it clear that a license plate can serve as a driver’s credential for a parking session.
Bike-lane enforcement
The final inclusion among the proposed parking changes is protecting bike lanes from cars. The City of Tacoma has made efforts to promote and expand its biking community, and this new ordinance would ban cars from using bike lanes as a parking spot for a quick errand or extra space for a large vehicle.
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Only emergency or maintenance vehicles responding to active incidents would be able to use the bike lanes in Tacoma.
The fine for blocking a bike lane would be $30, same as the fine for a permit parking zone infraction.
The proposed parking ordinance will go up for a second reading Tuesday, Aug. 6. If passed, the Tacoma Police Department, Parking Enforcement and Road Use Compliance teams would regulate the newly added parking rules. The costs of implementing the ordinance is estimated to be less than $5,000, according to The News Tribune.
Frank Sumrall is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read his stories here and you can email him here.
