PPA on-street parking rates have gone up in Center City

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Parking in Center City just got pricier. Beginning July 1, drivers will pay an extra dollar per hour at meters — a hike the Philadelphia Parking Authority says is its first in over a decade.

Parking meters in core Center City, defined by the PPA as Arch to Locust streets and 4th to 20th streets, now cost $4 per hour, up from $3. “Center City Area,” from Spring Garden to Bainbridge streets between the Schuylkill and Delaware rivers and excluding locations already defined as core, jumped from $2.50 to $3.50 per hour. And Center City’s long-term meters, which have time limits from four to 12 hours and used to cost $1.50 an hour, now run drivers an hourly $2.50.

The price hikes are expected to increase parking turnover, leading to improved street parking availability and, in turn, decreased congestion, the PPA stated on its website.

Part of Philadelphia’s recently passed budget, City Council revised the traffic code to update meter rates based on recommendations by the city’s Tax Reform Commission.

The increase is expected to generate an additional $4 million in on-street revenue, according to an email from PPA spokesperson Martin O’Rourke. That revenue will go into the city’s general fund and to the School District of Philadelphia; these entities will decide how to spend the money.

Parking fares can be paid curbside at pay-by-plate meters and through a mobile app.