The City of Philadelphia struggles to do most basic things correctly. Ever had a phone call with the revenue department? Pay a visit to traffic court on Spring Garden Street? Pray to God that you don’t experience either one of those things.

While we’re on the topic of misery, here’s another tone deaf move that reeks worse than Pepe Le Pew, before the cartoon skunk was #cancelled:

Counter productive to what? To being decent human beings? These folks just want to bleed you dry for more money, when they already can’t budget for shit down there. We’re talking about the same city that was in charge of 30 million dollars that just mysteriously vanished. Same city that blows through tax dollars like they’re nothing.

Here’s the full statement from the PPA:

“After analyzing parking trends, researching best practices, and talking to businesses, the City’s Office of Transportation, Infrastructure and Sustainability (OTIS) determined that the policy of relaxed enforcement is counter-productive. 

“The best practice for on-street parking management says that there should be one or two open spots on every block. This allows residents to find a spot and patronize businesses without excessive circling the block. Similar programs, such as free parking on Wednesdays or First-Fridays were discontinued in the past without negative impacts. Free parking on Saturdays in December encouraged all-day on-street parking while discouraging the turnover that is needed for customers to find a spot and start shopping. 

“The City will continue to work with the PPA and our businesses to ensure the best accessibility to our incredibly shopping districts.”

Yeah I dunno. I’m not buying it. Smells like they’re just looking for more money here.

Plus, with inflation, how much does a dollar get you in a Philadelphia meter? It used to be something ridiculous like 15 minutes, and now you probably only get 14 minutes instead.

You just cannot trust the PPA. All PPA are Bad. #APPAAB

EDIT –

There is always “excessive circling the block” regardless of whether enforcement is relaxed or not. It’s Philadelphia. Parking is always bad. So when you use the “it’s about creating turnover” explanation, that rings a little hollow. A lot of people just walk back to their spot and refill the meter and replace the ticket on the dashboard. The goal here is to incentivize people to come into the city and spend their money at small businesses, which generates more tax revenue anyway. It’s all redundant.