SF’s Newsom: Let’s Not Extend Parking Meter Hours in a Recession

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom has snagged some high-profile
support for his nascent California gubernatorial bid, but he may have
some trouble with the transit-riding, congestion-weary constituency. My
colleagues Matthew Roth and Bryan Goebel have the story over at Streetsblog San Fran:

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom (Photo: Gawker)

Mayor Gavin Newsom has been quietly pressuring MTA Chief Nat Ford to
delay or prevent proposals to extend parking meter hours on weeknights
and Sundays, despite a looming mid-year MTA budget deficit and studies
that show it’s good policy, Streetsblog has learned. …

“The Mayor thinks it’s the wrong time to make these moves,” said Nathan
Ballard, Newsom’s communications director. “Right now, with the economy
where it is, the burden on ordinary people for city services is already
stretched to the max, and so he hasn’t seen anything that convinces him
otherwise. He’s open to arguments, but he’s still where he was.”

The
“we can’t change policy in a bad economy” argument is familiar to
Capitol Hill transportation watchers, who saw the Obama administration
use the recession to rule out a gas tax hike or per-mile vehicle fee earlier this year.

But
in Newsom’s case, as Matt and Bryan point out, San Francisco is lagging
behind its fellow major cities when it comes to charging for parking.
In Los Angeles, where voters will soon be looking at Newsom’s
credentials, meters remain on until 2 a.m. New York City keeps meters
on until midnight, and Washington D.C.’s stay on until 10 p.m.

And
with the city transit authority facing possible fare hikes or service
cuts in the wake of a budget deficit, it’s tough to see how not
extending parking meter hours doesn’t hit non-car-owning voters where
it hurts.