D.C.’s transportation gurus will convene Tuesday for two meetings tackling some of the city’s most bothersome transportation problems: parking and traffic camera tickets.
The District Department of Transportation wants residents, commuters, business owners and anyone else who uses the city’s parking to show up at its Parking Think Tank on Tuesday. It will be the first in a series of five meetings to gauge public opinion on the city’s parking problems and solutions, officials said. Possible issues will include controversial red-top parking meters, visitor parking passes, commercial parking and bicycle parking.
“It’s an open forum for all things regarding parking,” said DDOT spokeswoman Monica Hernandez. “Right now we’re trying to get an idea of what’s out there in terms of what are the important issues, how are we doing, how could we do better, what needs to be prioritized.”
Tuesday’s meeting in the Old Council Chambers at 441 Fourth St. NW at 2 p.m. will focus on the downtown area; other meetings will concentrate on other areas but will have much of the same information, so residents only need to attend one, Hernandez said. An online survey will also be revealed Tuesday. Drivers can find the survey and more dates and times for the meeting at ddot.dc.gov/parkingthinktanks.
D.C. Council members Mary Cheh and Tommy Wells will lead a task force of experts trying to find the best way to reduce speed and red-light camera ticket fines. Wells plans to introduce a bill this fall.
Wells said earlier this year that because the goal of traffic cameras is safety, there’s no need to have sky-high fines. District camera tickets can cost up to $250, compared with $40 tickets in Montgomery County.
“There are significant, real dangers with running red lights and speeding, so we need those cameras. But the cameras shouldn’t be a revenue source just for the purposes of general revenue. They need to be part of a program that maximizes safety,” said David Alpert, a member of the task force and the creator of the city planning blog Greater Greater Washington.
Cheh said she wants to explore all sides of the issue before making a definite decision to lower fines.
The District’s traffic cameras generated $55 million in fiscal 2011, according to AAA Mid-Atlantic.
The task force meets in the John A. Wilson Building at 3 p.m. The meeting is open to the public; residents can also submit recommendations on traffic cameras to [email protected] and [email protected].
