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These plans have received comments from both politicians and the community, so the issue has not yet been discussed at a Council meeting. Vaida Raugelė, a member of the Klaipėda City Council, who invited representatives from various fields to an informal discussion on this issue on Wednesday, stated that there is a lack of discussions on this issue.
“People are divided into three groups: some offer to leave as they are, others say to increase rates and expand paid areas, and a third tend to go to the other extreme: abolish everything. There is clearly a lack of debate. I heard this from businessmen in the old town, the issue was not discussed in the Council of Small and Medium Enterprises. The NGO council has proposed an amendment, but the truth is that there is no real discussion with these advisory bodies, the politician said.
Parking fees in Klaipeda were introduced in 2009 and so far the fees have not changed, only after the introduction of the rounded euro. It is proposed to change them to regulate traffic flows, manage parking at the entrances, reduce air pollution.
“Decisions are made by experts, professionals in the field, not politicians. When you see that the draft decision has been prepared for two years, it is strange that you miss the number, the arguments, the examples,” added V. Raugelė. It was supported by Councilor Judita Simonavičiūtė, who stated that politicians had not heard the reasons from the Municipal Administration why taxes should be revised.
“They imposed a toll on me, it was a very complicated process. The fee is a disciplinary fee, an order fee. We present it in the light of the European experience. There was a lack of order, so a toll was introduced. Now there are two sides of the decision: the size of the toll and the infrastructure: the development of parking areas. But the objectives of what we have to do with this decision are not clear ”, commented the politician.
Leave, increase, destroy?
Klaipeda residents who participated in the discussion offered several options: keep current taxes in all areas, increase rates only in the most congested areas, prohibit parking in the old town, increase rates in all areas, but manage infrastructure, including abolishing taxes entirely by replacing them with traffic bans.
Another proposal is to review toll rates on an ongoing basis. For example, dividing the city not into 4 parking zones, as there are now, but more and constantly monitoring how parking lots are filled. If the fill exceeds, say, 80 percent, increase the fees, if the lot is constantly empty, lower the fee.
Liudvika Kuzminčiūtė, representative of the Klaipėda Green Association, believes that the most visited and complicated places should be highlighted, where there are many inconveniences for residents, for example near the Recreation Park in Melnragė. In those places, according to L. Kuzminčiūtė, it would be worthwhile to extend the taxable period and increase the rates.
Transport representative Linas Poška stated that the level of motorization is increasing. According to her, in the last three years, the number of passenger cars in the city has increased by 17 thousand. Furthermore, according to data from Klaipėda Passenger Transport, the time spent by cars in toll zones has also increased.
“In 2012, the average car parked in the parking lot was 55 cents, in 2019 – 1.51 euros. Therefore, it remains almost three times longer. How many parking spaces will we expand if the prices are such that it is possible to lose the car for a day or more? If we create a comfortable environment for cars, people will buy more cars and use them as often as possible. The more they buy, the more places they will demand ”, L. Poška opined that it is necessary to increase taxes.
He gave the example of Paris, where the demolition of car parks had begun, replacing them with green areas or playgrounds.
According to L. Poška, many preferential permits are also issued, in 2019. 11,292 were issued. “That is a very large number. Residence permit too cheap. It was speculated when the permissions were transferred to others. There is no possibility of avoiding it, only the price that would make you think whether to take one permit and whether to take another permit for the second car, ”commented L. Poška.
What to do with the old town?
There is much discussion about the proposal to significantly increase the rates in the old town: now most of the cars parked there are people who live and work there, they have permits and there are few visitors. And in general, in the opinion of the participants in the debate, we should look for ways to attract people to the old town, rather than discourage higher taxes. This requires improving infrastructure: establishing parking spaces where cars can be left, and then talking about raising taxes.
Aurelija Petkūnienė, director of the Klaipėda Employers’ Union of the Old City, says that the obstruction of the Old City is scheduled, because about 80 percent of cars have permits.
“We will not ban people from buying cars and driving, or residents from building. But now the atypical situation of a pandemic is a very difficult time for business. The old town is dominated by businesses that were banned during the pandemic: small shops, beauty salons, hairdressers, travel agencies.
To us, increasing parking fees sounds horrible, like planning a wedding during a funeral. It should be postponed as far as the old town is concerned. Car staying longer is an advantage, not a disadvantage, because it means that there is something to be done, ”said A. Petkūnienė.
The issue of parking fees may return to City Hall in late April. Participants in the discussion hope that by then the proposals will be presented to the public and the opinions of various stakeholders will be heard and the questions raised will be answered.
In January, 3 possible variants of toll rate changes were presented at the Klaipėda City Council College meeting.
The first has been proposed since May to change the green area of the coast, with the exception of the parking lots on the Giruliai highway, for the yellow one. It is also proposed in this option to extend the toll period of the red zone. Currently, paid parking from Monday to Friday is from 08:00. in the morning until 6 pm in the afternoon.
If this option is approved, the toll would be applied on working days starting at 8 in the morning. morning at 10 pm It was proposed not only to expand the red zone to include the sites in Melnrage on Audros Street and the accesses to the Recreation Park in front of the university, but also to review the layout of the blue zone by proposing to transfer it to the bus. station entrances.
An increase in the prices of all types of parking permits has been considered as of January 1, 2022. If this option is approved, it is projected that revenues will increase by around 400 thousand per year. euros.
The second option was a proposal from 2022. January 1 expand the paid parking areas in the Sportininkų district – up to Malūnininkų street, on the Vilhelmo Berbomo street section – to Kretinga street and in the southern part of the city – to Kauno street.
The variant of this proposal is based on the fact that the appearance of a police station on Kauno Street has caused a significant parking problem. Therefore, the assignment of this place to the blue zone would allow to maintain the general parking regime.
However, the Kaunas street problem is already being resolved. If this option is approved, starting in 2022. January 1, the red zone rate is 0.90 to 1.80 euros per hour, in which case the amount of additional income would be more than 500 thousand per year. euros.
The third option was to accept the two previous proposals and increase rates in all areas starting in September. With the approval of this proposal, from 2022 it would be possible to raise 900 thousand. euros.
The toll collected is intended to cover administrative expenses and improve public transport infrastructure. The administration of the toll amounts to 595 thousand annually. euros.
