Surly in SF

Sheeeeeeit–the SFMTA raised meter parking for motorcycles from 2.8X to 4X!!!  That means $1200 more per year for downtown commuters.  WTF?!

This is fucking bullshit.  I wrote my district supervisor and the mayor–if you are as pissed as I am, I encourage you to do the same and pass this on to others who ride in SF. Links to the contact forms are here:

Mayor: http://www.sfgov.org/site/mayor_index.asp?id=22018
Supervisors: http://www.sfgov.org/site/bdsupvrs_index.asp

Perhaps letters to the SFMTA will help too. Here’s my letter:

[mayor/supervisor so-and-so],

I recently discovered that the SFMTA quadrupled the parking meter rates throughout the city during the July 1 rate increase. This seems excessive and disproportionate considering that the regular auto rates increased a mere 16% to 33%.

Motorcycles, mopeds and scooters have much greater fuel economy than their 4-wheeled counterparts. Additionally, they reduce congestion on the streets. The SFMTA rate increase diminishes the collective good of 2-wheeled vehicles. This is contradictory to San Francisco’s green initiatives.

Perhaps a rate increase was necessary; however, a 300% increase is excessive. Downtown commuters will see an annual increase of $1200 in their parking fees. This seems to be contributing to the disturbing trend of making San Francisco increasingly unaffordable to most of its residents.

Can you tell me what can be done to return the rates to something more reasonable?

Thanks,

[your name]