Bike sharing program launched in NYC
New York City’s bike-sharing program was officially launched last week, sending 6,000 bright blue “Citi Bikes” onto the streets of Manhattan and Brooklyn. The system will feature 24/7 access to terminals at hundreds of subway stations around New York. Each terminal is equipped with a touchscreen kiosk, a map of the service area and a […]
Synchronization gets the green light in LA
Los Angeles has long been a symbol of America’s traffic congestion with its polluted stretches of multi-lane freeways turning into car parks during rush hour, aggravating its users. However, if city planners are correct, this is about to change — with LA turning from eternal gridlock into a best practice model for traffic control. This […]
Quest to improve cycling safety in Otago NZ
Two recent deaths of cyclists on the streets of Dunedin have prompted councillors to investigate options for rejigging parking and traffic management protocols on some of the city’s busiest thoroughfares. The Otago Daily Times reported requests have been made to council and the NZ Transport Agency to investigate the option of increasing parking limits for […]
Can road pricing really improve urban productivity
The Grattan Institute has this month released a report entitled, Productive Cities: Opportunity in a changing economy offering solutions to help increase economic productivity and efficiency in Australian cities. The report analyses housing, income and transport data in Australia’s four largest cities to show that while highly paid and qualified workers are living close to city […]
Plans to ease weekend congestion in Sydney
Earlier this week the Sydney Morning Herald reported on the State Government’s imminent plans to extend clearways on Sydney’s most congested roads to include weekends. The report tells us that there are up to 200,000 more cars on Sydney’s roads on Saturday mornings when compared with weekday mornings, and less people are using public transport. This […]
Futuristic transport plan for Windhoek
Namibia’s capital Windhoek is close to finalising a futuristic transport master plan, focusing on safety, aesthetic and environmental concerns, as well as traffic efficiency by integrating the road network of the capital, including surrounding regions and the international airport. The Sustainable Urban Transport Master Plan is a collaborative effort between the City of Windhoek and […]
Parking levy could fund transport expansion in Toronto
Toronto’s transport authority Metrolinx has big plans to solve their city’s congestion troubles, but the question remains, how are they going to pay for an ambitious list of proposed investments? To better engage the community and help inform policy decisions, the authority has released an online interactive simulation where the public can select the projects […]
Brisbane to Melbourne high-speed rail, but at what cost?
Phase two of the Federal Government’s study to construct high-speed rail (HSR) spanning from Brisbane to Melbourne via Sydney and Canberra was released this week to a lukewarm reception. The ambitious infrastructure plan would be the largest investment of any national project, eclipsing the NBN many times over. The HSR network, comprising over 1,700 kms […]
George Street makeover a step closer
Both the State Government and the City of Sydney agree that light rail from Circular Quay to the city’s east along George Street will be a great thing for Sydney. The vision is for an integrated transport network able to move large groups of commuters quickly and effectively around the CBD and out to major […]
Transit Oriented Development needs to be more than transit and development
Transit Oriented Development (TOD) is not a new concept in urban planning. DNAinfo.com has published a story about the latest mixed development taking advantage of local public transport hubs in Chicago. The Wicker Park building contains 99 residential units but only 15 car spaces, supposedly reserved for visitors only. Whilst ratios vary around the world, […]
Green badges to encourage electric car investment
The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) has called for free parking for electric vehicles in an attempt to encourage UK drivers to switch to the more environmentally friendly mode of travel. An article published by the Guardian this week, explains that the concept is similar to the existing blue badge scheme for disabled drivers. […]
Electric cars to have a home at Highland Park, Chicago
The Chicago Tribune has reported Highland Park, a municipality of Chicago, will create areas in its downtown to accommodate electric cars. The city will consider priority parking spaces and reduced vehicle sticker fees to further incentivise electric car owners. The concept is hoped to be not only good for the environment, but also may help […]
Hobart’s Bike Hubs turn drab into art
Bicycle racks are generally seen as a functional yet drab and unimaginative element of the urban landscape. In Hobart, recently commissioned bike hubs, have turned that idea on its head. The bike hubs are the vision of local architect and designer, Ken Betlehem, to whom they represent an understanding of international bike parking best practice, […]
National Cycling Strategy to make roads safer for cyclists
A report released late last year by Austroads entitled Cycling on Higher Speed Roads will dovetail into the agency’s National Cycling Strategy 2011-2016. Leon Patterson, National Director Infrastructure Management for the IPWEA says the report provides options for public works professionals to consider when seeking ways to accommodate bicycles on Australian roads. The latest report is only […]
Jakarta’s off-street parking tariff hike to “cover loss insurance for car owners”
The doubling of Jakarta’s off-street parking tariffs to Rp 4,000 per hour (AUD$0.41) prior to the last year’s gubernatorial (City Governor) elections will be challenged in an Indonesian court. Lawyer David Tobing has filed a lawsuit against the Jakarta Legislative Council over the higher parking tariffs, claiming the unannounced hike by the former regime led […]
Free Weekend Parking Trial Halted for Gold Coast Light Rail
A trial to provide free weekend parking in Southport and Surfers Paradise has now been permanently quashed following a review which found that the cost to the city outweighed the benefit to retailers and shoppers. The parking trial was proposed early last year by Councillor Tom Tate as part of his Mayoral election campaign and […]
More parking required for rail project success: Springfield, Brisbane
The site of the Springfield railway station due to open this year. A new rail link south west of Brisbane, spanning The Darra to Springfield will reportedly deliver a major capacity upgrade for the Western Corridor’s transport needs. The project is on track to be delivered by Queensland’s transport Minister on or ahead of time […]
New York City’s parking privatisation on hold
New York City has scrapped a controversial plan to privatise its street-parking management system. The concept was designed to help ease the financial position of the city by generating a steady revenue stream under a leasing arrangement with the private sector, according to the Wall Street Journal. However opposition to the plan was strong, citing […]
Kunming, China, trials ‘no car day’
The city of Kunming in China (the home town of our analyst Sunny Huang) held its first ever ‘no car day’ recently, with private cars not allowed in the city centre. The event was the climax of Kunming’s ‘Urban Public Transport Week’, promoting the city’s bus system and other alternatives to driving private automobiles around […]
Update on Hong Kong parking prices
In November, we reported that the cost of property prices for car parks in Hong Kong was going through the roof, following the introduction of measures from the government to cool the cost of property prices. Car parking spaces are now selling for more than some homes, with AU$276,000 being paid for a space in […]
Avis to buy Zipcar car sharing service
Car sharing service Zipcar agreed last week to a sale to Avis Budget Group for about $500 million. The deal puts Avis ahead of its competition in the hourly rental market. According to the Boston Globe, the market for hourly rental in the US has grown to nearly $400 million and could reach $10 billion […]
NYC upgrades parking signs
The New York City Transportation Department announced last week the replacement of more than 6,000 parking signs with an easier-to-follow design. According to the NYTimes, key changes include “more breathing room” (white space), eliminating a colour (blue), and reducing the number of characters needed to explain the rules to a Twitter-friendly 140 (from 250). The […]
Paying for parking by Etag is a reality (in Santiago!)
During our recent visit to the South American capital, we were able to witness the operation of a payment by e-tag in a large shopping centre car park. The system has been recently installed and the owner is expecting that use will increase very fast from a currently low 2% to around 40% of transactions. […]
Parking levy in Adelaide
The South Australian State Government has proposed a car park levy for the Adelaide City Council region, at a rate of $750 per space. According to AdelaideNow.com.au, the council has defended the decision, pointing out that Adelaide will still have cheaper parking fees and the highest number of available parking spaces than any other Australian […]
Parking and Traffic Consultants – 2012 year in review
2012 has been another eventful year for PTC. Many new clients joined the prestigious names in our portfolio, including Perth Airport, Health Infrastructure, Adelaide University and Leichhardt Council. Many other previous clients engaged us to do new work. Just to give you an idea, during the year we worked for these airports: Adelaide, Gold Coast, […]
Sydney light rail project to be green lit
The first stage of the extension of Sydney’s light rail appears to be moving ahead, with the staged construction of a line from the University of NSW in Randwick to the CBD expected to be announced this week. NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell will announce that work will start at the university and go to Central […]
Sydney’s rush hour traffic grinds to a halt
The release last week of the Auditor-General’s performance report into peak hour travel on Sydney’s major roads revealed that traffic is getting slower in the afternoon. However, the report says that there has been a minor improvement in travel times in the city’s morning peak hour. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the average afternoon […]
Hola from Santiago
A guest post from Parking & Traffic Consultants’ Managing Partner, Cristina Lynn Hola to all our blog readers! George Burton, Grant McLean and I are in Santiago, Chile to kick start a project for a major shopping centre owner. The project will include design review, signage and wayfinding and external traffic issues. I thought you […]
A year of ‘Parking and Traffic’ blogs in review
Feel like the year has passed you by too? If you’ve been too busy to stay on top of the parking and traffic industry news every week – never fear! Here is our annual round-up of the highs and lows, and headline-making stories from 2012. Parking and policy in Australia This year saw Parking & […]
Highway house comes tumbling down
The Chinese ‘house in the highway’ we reported on last week has finally been bulldozed shortly after the owners accepted a settlement. The five-story house was demolished after its owners, duck farmer Luo Baogen and his wife, agreed to accept compensation of 260,000 yuan ($40,000), according to the Xiayangzhang village chief, Chen Xuecai. According to […]