Is DART going to begin charging to park at its rail stations? Television reports are saying the board is considering doing just that, so we thought we’d give you a bit of context — especially since DART promised just last week to keep its fares steady in the short term even in the face of rising fuel prices.
The short answer is this: Maybe someday, but probably not any time soon, the agency says.
Here’s the skinny. With ridership up on its buses and trains, some of DART’s parking lots are full. You know that if you’ve tried to find a space any time recently. Some DART members would like to find a way to discourage residents from cities that aren’t from a DART-member city from parking in its lots, leaving spaces for riders who do live in member cities.
That’s not an easy proposition. For one thing, many who lives outside of DART’s member cities still shop in cities that are members, and therefore pay their sales taxes just like everyone else. And for another, figuring out where each driver is from when they enter the parking lot isn’t so easy, either. (You can find that discussion here, in the board minutes, on page 15.)
So before they decide whether to ask the Legislature for permission to start charging some customers and not others, some DART members wanted the 411 on the parking situation as it stands now. That’s what they got Tuesday at a committee meeting.
Here’s what Morgan Lyons, spokesman for DART told me late yesterday.
“There are no plans to charge anyone for parking now. It’s not in the (new) budget,” he said. “The Board is talking about options. No plans. No vote. Just discussion. As you guys have reported the parking lots are full in some locations (Plano, Glenn Heights, Downtown Garland, Westmoreland, etc.). One issue is the number of commuters from non-member cities using those lots. There’s been informal conversation about charging those commuters for parking and that’s even something we’ve heard about from commuters. So the Board has asked Staff to give them an overview of paid parking options and that’s what’s scheduled to happen today.”