Ever-changing parking prices in San Francisco have drivers feeling like they are on a roller coaster ride. According to SF Gate, the Municipal Transportation Agency has adjusted meter prices for the fifth time since last July.
There is both good and bad news. Here's the good: The price of parking at some curbside meters dropped to 25 cents an hour. But wait, before you grab a quarter and head for a parking meter, don't forget, with the good comes the bad: in other areas, the price jumped to $4.75 an hour.
The 25-cent meters can be found on select blocks in the Civic Center, Fisherman’s Wharf and Fillmore areas.
The most expensive meters are located along 16 blocks in the Financial District.
It’s all part of SFpark, a parking management experiment that bases the cost to park at meters on demand.
The idea is to lure drivers to blocks where parking is plentiful and keep them away from more congested areas.
Under the program, the transportation agency can increase the rates by no more than 25 cents or lower them by no more than 50 cents at a time. The rates, which fluctuate by block, time of day and day of the week, can’t be modified more than every six weeks. In general, the hourly price can go no higher than $6, although it can jump to $18 for special events.
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Under the latest rate change, the price was lowered for 31 percent of the metered hours, increased for 31 percent, and was unchanged for the remainder. About 7,000 of the city’s 29,000 meters fall under the SFpark project.
A detailed breakdown of the rates can be found at www.sfpark.org/rates.
