Report CBD Curb Use Study Report 2018-06-21 - NOLA

CBD Curb Use Study Report

CITY OF NEW ORLEANS

Department of Public Works

October 29, 2018


2 Prepared for: Department of Public Works

Prepared for:

City of New Orleans, Department of Public Works

Prepared by:

AECOM 1515 Poydras Street New Orleans, LA 70112 (based on initial work by Rick Williams Consulting)


3 Prepared for: Department of Public Works

Table of Contents

NEW ORLEANS CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT CURB USE STUDY REPORT 4

1. INTRODUCTION 4

2. STUDY AREA 4

3. DATA GATHERING AND ANALYSIS 5 Public Involvement 6

4. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PARKING SUPPLY 6 Parking Occupancy 12 Violations 18 Freight and Passenger Loading Zones & Cab Stands 19 Turnover – Efficiency of the Parking System 20 Related Issues 20

5. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 23 Recommendations for Immediate Implementation: 24 Recommendations for Consideration and Implementation: 27


Prepared for: Department of Public Works 4

New Orleans Central Business District Curb Use Study Report

(A SUPPLEMENT TO THE DOWNTOWN TRAFFIC CONDITIONS ANALYSIS)

1. Introduction In 2015, the City of New Orleans, Department of Public Works (DPW) and regional partners hired a team led by AECOM to identify downtown transportation conditions, catalog certain aspects of the transportation infrastructure, determine future transportation needs, and develop transportation recommendations. Among the issues studied and addressed were curb use, on-street parking, and parking pricing. This brief report is an update to the earlier report, utilizing 2018 data on curb use in the Central Business District (CBD).

The purpose of the initial Parking Study was to provide the City of New Orleans a comprehensive and detailed understanding of curb use dynamics downtown. Metrics related to parking occupancy, turnover, duration of stay, and hourly patterns were used, as were industry best practices, in order to evaluate the on-street parking systems. The data also provided usage characteristics of loading zones, both freight and passenger, which sometimes outnumber parking stalls on different block faces.

Findings from the 2016 report and this supplement can assist the City in near-term decision-making on existing parking, in understanding where parking constraints and surpluses exist, and in determining whether factors such as abuse of time limits adversely affect access.

2. Study Area The resources required to conduct a stall-by-stall analysis of the on-street parking system in the greater downtown would have been cost prohibitive. As such, the 2016 project team chose a representative sample of parking to analyze. Eight nodes (small but representative study areas) were chosen to accurately depict parking behaviors from varying parts of the larger downtown. These included three nodes located in the Central Business District.

In 2018, the Downtown Development District (DDD) determined that there were a number of implementation steps that needed to occur, and that there was a need for specific

Figure 1 2016 Parking Data Sample Areas



recommendations regarding how the regulation of parking stalls in the CBD should be changed. The DDD secured funding for this work and partnered with DPW to complete the work. For this 2018 Study, the entire CBD was surveyed, rather than only surveying sample areas. Though the entire area was surveyed, the survey methods were less intensive than those in 2016.

Figure 2 Study Area for 2018 Study

3. Data Gathering and Analysis In 2016, each sample area was carefully chosen to capture a diversity of parking habits and behaviors that are exhibited throughout the larger study area. The data was used to assess numerous performance metrics for the on-street system.

Elements of the 2016 parking inventory and data collection effort included quantification of the parking inventory as well as analysis of parking utilization and turnover, parking duration-of-stay, violation rates, variable parking rate feasibility, and moving to evade.

The 2018 survey was similar, but covered the entire CBD and was focused on occupancy data. No sample areas were used. Instead, a team of nine surveyors walked individual routes for consecutive hours in the morning and the afternoon, covering the entire study area between Poydras and Canal Streets, S Peters Street to Loyola Avenue. Occupancy data was collected for each stall and field notes were collected related to numerous factors including use and misuse of loading zones.



The data collected allowed some consistency checking against the 2016 data. The conclusions drawn from the 2016 and 2018 surveys are largely the same. Findings from both the 2016 and 2018 analyses, as well as stakeholder input, were used to develop the recommendations in this report.

Public Involvement

For the initial phase of this project, there were three stakeholder meetings as well as a presentation to the Freight Roundtable, sponsored by the Regional Planning Commission. In 2018, an online comment tool was developed and promoted, and two public meetings were held, with notifications sent to downtown stakeholders and others.

The online tool was developed using map.social software. The software allowed users to make site-specific comments on a digital map. Users were asked to enter specific suggestions regarding the following issues and more:

Stalls that should be allocated to a different use

Stalls that should be NOT allocated to a different use

Other issues such as blocks where vehicles block travel lanes.

The City and the DDD also sponsored public meetings to collect input and review the recommendations. On the 23rd of May, there were two open houses held, one at 2:00 PM and the pother at 6:00 PM. The International House Hotel graciously provided their conference rooms for these meetings. Attendees included residents, business owners, and representatives from UPS. At the open houses, attendees were able to leave general comments, make site-specific comments on a large map, and review early findings.

After the project team developed its full set of recommendations, a third and final round of public and stakeholder involvement was initiated. The draft map and report were posted on the City’s website. Stakeholders were contacted and asked for their comments. And the recommendations were discussed at a booth established at 201 St Charles Avenue, on November 1st. Prior to the Nov 1st meeting, dozens of businesses were handed fliers in the study area, seeking to cultivate input from small businesses, hoteliers, and others.

4. Characteristics of the Parking Supply The Department of Public Works has done a good job of standardizing time stays, where the majority of stalls in a management area have a “standard” time stay designation, in this case, 2-Hours. This is a customer-friendly practice that reduces confusion and minimizes parking related angst.

The CBD is primarily regulated as 2-Hour metered stalls. But a high number of stalls are also regulated as taxi stands, passenger zones, and freight zones. A very small amount of the total curb face is occupied by non-parking uses like fire hydrants and ‘no parking’ areas at intersections1. A still smaller amount of the current curb face is occupied by bike share facilities.

1 Also known as Sevens, for the yellow striped seven indicating that parking is not allowed.

Figure 3 Parking Kiosk on Canal Street



There is a noticeable lack of curb space dedicated to parklets, bike corrals, green infrastructure and stormwater infiltration. Such features are proliferating throughout the City with support from DPW and others, and have become increasingly common features in streetscapes throughout the United States.

The Central Business District has nearly 1,000 total on-street parking spaces (est. 985). It is very difficult to be precise with this figure because on-street parking is not as rigidly portioned as a parking lot. The City’s striping requirements do not include lines separating individual parking stalls. Also, a wide variety of events can have a small, short-term effect on the amount of parking. A construction site, or a bad parking job, or an extra-long vehicle, for example - can diminish the parking capacity of a block face, temporarily reducing supply. For that reason, the occupancy and violations data analyzed here is best viewed proportionally.

These 1,000 on-street parking spaces can be broken into six types, based on regulation (Table 1). More than half (61%) is metered parking which is mostly provisioned through centrally located kiosks and delineated by street signs. These 582 metered spaces have a two-hour time limit that is enforced by DPW.

The second most common type of curb use is Passenger Zones, making up 13% of all on-street parking. These 132 stalls are mostly located near hotels and restaurants. See the figures below for the location of passenger zones.

Un-metered (free) parking which comprises 11% of the on-street parking spaces are the third most common type of curb use in the study area This type of curb use is defined by a lack of signage and is unregulated in terms of payment or time constraint. See the figures below for the location of currently un-metered stalls.

Table 1 Estimate of Stalls in the CBD, by type

Stall Type # %

Metered 628 55%

Un-Metered 95 8%

Passenger Zones 203 18%

Freight Zones 110 10%

Enforcement 36 3%

Cab Stand 48 4%

No Parking 31 3%

Total 1151

There are 72 Freight Zones in the study area which account for 7% of the permitted on-street parking. These zones are typically located at the beginning or end of a block face and are meant to serve restaurants or other businesses that require large or frequent deliveries. See the figures below for the location of freight zones.

Enforcement stalls are specifically designated for law enforcement vehicles. These 31 stalls account for just 3% of the total on-street parking and are typically located near City Hall and the Federal District Court House.

The approximate 26 Cab Stand spaces in the study area account for 2% of the total on-street parking. These spaces are defined by signage marking curb space as a taxi stand either between two signs or from one sign to the end of a block. That being said, taxis often coordinate to fit the maximum number of cabs in a given cab stand so the actual number of taxi stand spaces is difficult to accurately report and is best served by the proportional 2% figure.



Figure 4 Freight and Passenger Zones and Other in the CBD



Figure 5 Currently Unregulated (free) Parking in CBD



Figure 6 Park-Mobile zones in the CBD



Figure 7 Kiosks, Meters, and Off-Street Parking in CBD



Figure 8 Overview of Existing Conditions in CBD

Parking Occupancy

Based on the parking sample areas studied in 2016, 65% of the stalls are available for public use (i.e., non-loading). This has likely contributed to the constrained conditions described herein. In 2016, the overall peak hour occupancy was high at 80 percent, signaling a partially constrained supply. Peak usage of 2-Hour stalls reached approximately 82% overall with average time stays hovering around 2 hours; violation rates mimic the larger study area at 19%, well above the recommended range.

The CBD peak hour utilization map (Figure 9) provides a visual depiction of occupancies by block face using color. A heat map uses color to display ranges of occupancy levels as measured against an industry standard of 85%. When occupancy exceeds that level, the system is considered constrained. The 85% Occupancy Rule is the standard for measuring and monitoring the performance of the parking supply and triggering specific management strategies and rate ranges by discrete zone or area.



Figure 9: 2016 - Peak Hour Parking Utilization - CBD



> 85% Constrained

System

55% - 69%

Moderate Utilization

70% - 85%

Efficient System

< 55%

Under-Utilized System

Parking occupancy data reflects the stalls that were occupied as the survey crew covered their assigned territory during the two AM and two PM runs.

Table 2 breaks the parking occupancy data down by time of day and stall regulation. In the 2018 data set, both AM and PM occupancy, throughout the entire study area, was about 74% occupied – slightly lower than in 2016. Un-metered parking (stalls with no signage at all) was surveyed at 78% occupancy during the AM period but dropped to 68% occupancy during the PM period. Though this survey did not include a dwell analysis, it was anecdotally observed that most of the vehicles parked in the unmetered stalls remained in the same spot throughout the day. Freight zone occupancy was only 50% during the morning period and increased to nearly 70% in the afternoon. However, the freight zones were not occupied by trucks or any vehicles actually delivering products to stores and restaurants. Rather, private vehicles occupied almost 90% of the freight zones, for long periods of time.

Table 2 AM and PM Occupancy from the 2018 Survey

% AM Occupancy % PM Occupancy

Metered 74% 73%

UnMetered 78% 68%

Freight Zone* 50% 69%

Passenger Zone* 72% 65%

Enforcement Spaces 76% 76%

Cab Stands 71% 66%

*though over 50% occupied, seldom by the intended user for the allowed period of time

Figure 10 Depiction of 85% Rule



Law Enforcement designated on-street parking held steady at 76% throughout the entire day. Cab stand occupancy was 71% for the morning period and 66% for the afternoon. It is noteworthy, though, that some cab stands had nearly constant turn over while others appeared to be de-fact break rooms for drivers.

Note – occupancy is shown for entire block face, though metered parking may occupy only a portion of block face

When examined geographically, the parking occupancy data reveals that the supply is heavily constrained in certain areas and moderately utilized in others.

Figure 11 shows that during the morning survey period parking is severely constrained along Gravier St and throughout the central part of the study area as well as the area closest to the river. Closer to Loyola Ave there are block faces with over 90% occupancy around the corner from blocks that are only half full. The picture that emerges is that the available on-street parking stalls are not uniformly distributed throughout the study area and often vary widely from block to block.

Parking distribution in the afternoon period is similar in that it is not distributed evenly, but the pattern is slightly different. Occupancy along Gravier St remains over 91% similar to the rest of the central section and areas near the river. Parking occupancy remains low in the 100 blocks of Rampart St (Roosevelt Way), Baronne St, and Carondelet St. Occupancy along Loyola Ave;

Figure 11 Morning Parking Occupancy (2018 Survey Data)



nearby blocks of Rampart St decrease during the afternoon while occupancy on Canal St increases. These small scale changes still confirm the overall finding that parking constraint is bunched into specific groups of block faces with the most constraint found near the river.

Figure 12 Afternoon Parking Occupancy (2018 Survey Data)

Another way of looking at the data is shown in Figure 13. For each block face the open or available stall count is shown in a ratio over the total number of stalls. For example 2/13 means that on average, during the 2018 survey, 2 of the 13 stalls were open on the given block face.



The project team also assessed the demand and supply of stalls dedicated for individuals with disabilities. ADA stalls were found throughout the study area, and clustered near key institutions like City Hall and Courthouses. On September 2nd, 2014, the City Council voted to allow drivers with the disability tags to park free in any metered stall for up to three hours.

Figure 13 Occupancy Quantified - Showing Available and Total Stalls per Bock Face



Violations

Approximately 20% of the vehicles parked in time-limited stalls downtown exceed the posted time stay. On the survey day in 2016, 427 vehicles exceeded the posted stay on-street. The industry best-practice standard for time stay violations is between 5 and 9 percent. New Orleans’s total is well above the high side of the standard.

Survey teams noted violations in several ways depending on the violation type. Freight Zone violations were noted if a passenger vehicle without a commercial license plate was parked in a freight zone. Passenger Zone violations were noted if the same vehicle was parked in a passenger zone during multiple survey runs. This particular method inherently undercounts the number of passenger zone infractions since a stay over 10 minutes counts as a violation and the survey team only noted stays that lasted close to an hour.

Bus stop violations were noted if a passenger vehicle without official markings – City of New Orleans, RTA, DDD, etc. – was parked in a designated bus stop. Enforcement space violations were noted for non-official vehicles, including unmarked police vehicles. No stopping zone and fire hydrant violations were noted if a vehicle was stationed in that space. Violations for metered parking spaces were not recorded in the 2018 survey.

Table 3 shows parking violation data broken down by time period as well as violation type. A roughly equal amount of violations were recorded during both the morning and afternoon periods, 95 violations in the AM and 104 violations in the PM. The breakdown by violation type is roughly similar as well.

Table 3 AM and PM Violations data from the 2018 Survey

AM Violations PM Violations

Violation Type # % # %

Passenger Zone 54 54% 49 46%

Freight Zone 32 32% 44 42%

Bus Stop 3 3% 5 5%

Enforcement Spaces 4 4% 4 4%

Fire Hydrant 1 1% 1 1%

No Stopping Zone 1 1% 1 1%

Total Violations 95 104

Passenger zone violations accounted for the majority during both of the time periods, 54% in the morning and 46% in the afternoon. Notably, this is a conservative estimate due to the violation methodology employed by the survey team which counted only if a vehicle was parked in a passenger zone for both survey runs, which is about 30 minutes. Most of the passenger zone violations occur in front of hotels.

Freight Zone violations were the second most commonly noted for both time periods as well. Roughly one-third of the total violations recorded during the morning survey period and 42% of the violations in the afternoon were found in Freight Zones. During both the AM and PM survey periods nearly every occupied freight zone was occupied by a non-delivery vehicle in violation of the freight zone policy.

Table 4 shows that of the 36 freight zones occupied by any vehicle during the AM period 32 were occupied by a non-delivery vehicle. During the PM period 50 freight zone spaces were



occupied, in general, and 44 of those vehicles were determined to be not delivery vehicles. The survey data shows that 89% of the occupied freight zones in the study area were occupied illegally across both survey periods.

Table 4 Freight Zone Violation Data

AM Period PM Period

Freight Zone Occupants 36 50

Freight Zone Violations 32 44

% Violators 89% 89%

The few remaining violations noted by the survey team were spread among enforcement spaces, fire hydrants, and no-stopping zones. In total, these account for around 10% of the total violations. Overall, the obvious area for concern related to parking violations is passenger zones and freight zones.

Freight and Passenger Loading Zones & Cab Stands

The large number of stalls devoted to loading prioritizes deliveries and freight movement over other user groups. While a crucial part of downtown commerce, industry standards would suggest a larger percentage of stalls be devoted to shorter-term customer/visitor use. Freight zones (FZ) need to be sufficiently plentiful, correctly sized, and distributed in a manner that accommodates deliveries. But it could be argued that these deliveries will occur regardless. When a ‘customer’ cannot find a place to park, they may choose, either in the moment or when planning their next trip, to go elsewhere. An overly constrained parking system can inadvertently discourage trips into the downtown.

Surveyors tracked license plates of vehicles parked in loading zones to see how those zones were being used. Over the course of the survey day they observed 28 vehicles (9% of all users) parked in excess of 5 hours. There is clearly wide-spread abuse of freight zones by individuals parking private vehicles, and for extended periods of time. This causes multiple problems, including the blocking of travel lanes by freight vehicles.

Many of the freight zones are dedicated for freight 24 hours a day. However, most freight deliveries are clustered at certain times of the day, depending on the products being delivered. UPS and similar vehicles deliver throughout the day. But larger trucks are most frequently seen in the morning downtown. There is certainly a reduction in deliveries after 5 PM.

Passenger Zones (PZs) take up a considerable amount of real estate in downtown New Orleans. Passenger zones, when properly managed, can help provide access for customers (e.g. hotel guests, diners, shoppers). These stalls are also helpful in providing direct access to those with mobility-related disabilities. However, there are too many dedicated passenger stalls in the CBD and they are much abused on a daily basis. The average time stays in PZs and the similar Hotel Zones, range from 1 hour and 42 minutes in Hotel Zones to 1 hour and 59 minutes in Passenger Zones. The average length of stay in Hotel Zones (1 hour and 42 minutes) seems excessive given the assumption that the curb zone is an active valet operation where vehicles should be circulating through those spaces much more quickly – in the 15 minute range. The Passenger Zones are intended for ten minute stops in New Orleans:



City Code: Sec. 154-869. - Parking in a passenger zone. No person shall park a vehicle in a passenger zone for any purpose or period of time other than for the expeditious receiving or discharging of passengers in any place marked as a passenger zone at any time, and then only for a period not to exceed ten minutes.

There are also an unnecessary number of stalls dedicated to taxis. Rather than provide space for passengers to be picked up in a taxi, these stalls are used to park taxis throughout the downtown. Long lines of taxis occupy public rights of way, in what could be stalls for customers. This equates to a large subsidy to the industry. The City does not allow curb space to be allocated for Transportation Network Companies such as Uber and Lyft. The intention is legitimate, trying to provide a place for taxis to queue, mostly near hotels, so that visitors can be quickly picked up. But TNCs do not have this same benefit, and the customer seems willing to wait a few short minutes for their Uber to arrive. Taxis could wait on private property, or in parking facilities while awaiting their next dispatch call.

Turnover – Efficiency of the Parking System

In most cities, the primary time limit allows for calculation of an intended turnover rate. For example, a 2-Hour stall should allow (at least) 5 vehicles to park in the space over a 10-hour period – as such the stall would have an intended turnover rate of 5.0. If, however, turnover were demonstrated to be at a rate of less than 5.0, the system would be deemed inefficient. A rate in excess of 5.0 would indicate a system that is operating efficiently.

In the New Orleans study area, the on-street parking system has an average turnover rate of 4.76. This indicator suggests the system could be more supportive of customer-based trips, trips vital to street-level activity or retail businesses. This is due in part to the number of No Limit stalls in the supply, which are more conducive to commuter trips than to visitor/customer trips.

Related Issues

The management of downtown traffic and downtown parking are forever intertwined. For example, a constrained system causes individuals to drive around looking for a space. A constrained parking supply can thereby adversely impact congestion levels and increase vehicle emissions. There are three conditions worth describing in the CBD, where parking management is directly affecting traffic.

First, freight zones are frequently occupied by private cars, illegally, and for long periods of time. This causes the delivery trucks to block travel lanes. Sometimes the truck drivers simply choose to block a travel lane even though the freight zone is unoccupied.

Second the areas set aside at intersections, for proper turning movements and site triangles, are frequently occupied by stopped or parked vehicles. Some refer to these areas as the sevens – for the yellow striping that resembles the number ‘7’. This causes safety problems for multiple parties. Turning vehicles may have insufficient space. Drivers may not be able to see on-coming traffic or pedestrians. And crosswalks are often blocked. Anecdotally, survey crews observed this most often done by taxi drivers and law enforcement personnel.



Figure 15 Two sevens both illegally occupied, causing safety issues

Third, individual commercial entities seem willing to take on their own passenger zone enforcement. This is largley happening at hotels. Come businesses are under the mistaken impression that they can regulate the public right of way, and take control over stalls near their own business. Any commercial enterpise that seizes control of the public right of way in this manner should be penalized until it is discontinued. When municipal enforcement of passenger zones increases, the problem should be remedied so that the hotels no longer feeled compelled to do this. As shown in Figure 16 Hampton Inn and the JW Marriott are claiming ‘ownership’ and control of the public street, and use signs that are intended to look official.

Figure 14 LEFT – Delivery driver electing to not use available freight zone

RIGHT - Car in freight zone, truck on sidewalk blocking lane



The City can best achieve its goals in close coordination with local businesses. Some commercial businesses, such as the Hampton Inn discussed above, should be contacted regarding location-specific issues that are arising as a result of their business practices. Not all of these businesses have attempted to take control of the public rights of way. For some of them, the issue is simply that their delivery trucks routinely block a lanes. The following list is not exhaustive; it was developed based on public input, data analysis, and observations of the project team. City staff should arrange meetings with the management of these institutions. At these meetings, the business owners or proprietors should be instructed to immediately discontinue illegal control of the rights of way, remove any non-municipal signage, remove all parking signs and bollards in the street (often used by valets). For those with delivery issues, City staff should work to resolve the issue with drivers as well. Table 5 Commercial control issues to be addressed

Business Issue Business Issue

Hampton Inn uses signage to

control PZ

Orpheum Theater uses barricades to

block off PZ (even

when theater is

closed)

Brothers on

Carondelet

deliveries blocking

lanes

Royal St Charles uses signage to

control PZ

CVS on Canal deliveries block

lanes

Pere Marquet uses signage to

control PZ

Walgreens on Canal deliveries block

lanes

JW Marriot use of passenger

zone for employees or

other, all day.

Windsor Court Tour buses blocking

lanes on Gravier

Sheraton General misuse of

loading zones on

Common

Roosevelt Bar Frequently blocks

PZ, parks classic

cars all day

Roosevelt Hotel Buses and valets

blocking lanes

Rubensteins on Canal uses signage to

control PZ

Pelham Hotel on

Common

uses barricades

control PZ

Figure 16 Illegal signage and control of public right of way



5. Conclusions and Recommendations The data and public input indicate that there are three significant challenges or opportunities for improvement in the management of the on-street parking supply in the Central Business District:

Challenges in the current system:

1. Private vehicles parked for long periods of time, in violation of the regulations and intent of freight and passenger loading zones, as well as for vehicles stopping in the travel lanes.

2. More stalls are needed for the customer. Additional 2-hour metered spaces are needed.

3. There are localized opportunities and issues to be addressed in some specific locations.

The following set of recommendations addresses these three key opportunities for improvement. The Report from the initial phase of the project provides a lengthy set of recommendations and implementation guidance. Please refer to that report for more detail, specifically the operational-based recommendations that would apply to the Parking Division as a whole.

Examples of the recommendations form the main report include:

Adopt the 85% Rule as the standard for measuring and monitoring the performance of the parking supply and triggering specific management strategies and rate ranges by discrete zone or area.

Develop and initiate a reasonable schedule of data collection to better assess performance of the downtown parking supply.

The following sections provide more specific guidance and remedies meant to address the most pressing parking issues in the CBD as outlined above. An accompanying map of the entire study area shows geo-specific recommendations where stalls should be added, removed, or differently managed.

Recommendations for Immediate Implementation:

1. Enforce the Loading Zones

2. Modify Loading Zone Signs to Show Time Stays

3. Track Citations by Type.

4. Institute Freight/ Metered Combination Stalls

5. Issue Lane Blocking Citations

6. Address Commercial Control of Public Right-of-Way.

7. Change the Regulation of Specific Stalls

Recommendations for Consideration and Implementation:

8. Eliminating All No-Limit/ Free Parking On-Street

9. Develop YOU’RE IN MY SPOT Cards

10. Charge for Private Use of Loading Zones

11. Increase Citation Rates

12. Protect Site Triangle Sevens

13. Allow Requests for Non-Parking Curb Uses or Bike Parking Corrals



Recommendations for Immediate Implementation:

Enforcement in the Loading Zones

Enforcement must increase for the loading zones, specifically freight and passenger loading. The survey data unarguably shows that these zones are improperly used as free parking by private vehicles instead of using these zones for loading. As a result, delivery trucks and ride-hailing vehicles are stopping in the road, blocking lanes. Based on observations and survey data, very few citations were issued for users of loading zones; neither non-commercial vehicles in freight zones nor personal vehicles parked in excess of two hours elicited parking citations in loading zones. While it appears enforcement crews do a reasonably good job at enforcing time stays, additional enforcement, particularly vehicles in loading zones, would likely result in better time stay compliance.

Loading zone occupancy rates may, in some cases, be overstated because a significant number of users were observed using the zones improperly. Surveyors collecting the 2018 occupancy data noted numerous examples of non-commercial users parking in the various loading zones. This could be for a number of reasons, lack of available adjacent parking and a willingness to ‘risk’ receiving a citation or a lack of understanding of loading zones in general.

In Figure 17 and Figure 18 the sign indicates the maximum allowed stay in these loading zones in Baton Rouge. The City should develop a non-fading sticker that can be used to add the time stays to existing signs. Similar stickers are already in use by DPW. When loading zone signs are replaced, the new format should include the time stay information.

Loading zone usage could be more closely regulated by the City, requiring users to register for a permit (temporarily or through annual renewal). This is important for on-going tracking, revenue generation to support loading zone enforcement, and to maintain accordance with all loading zone regulations.

To assure compliance with city ordinance the parking administrator should conduct regular, but sporadic enforcement of loading zones. This effort will ensure the curb space is being used correctly by authorized users, reduce the occurrence of violators, and allow the Parking

Figure 17 Use of Signage to

Clarify Time Stays

Figure 18 Signs Showing Time Stay Limits



Administrator to confidently reduce the number of loading zones, without fear of them be under provided. The zones should be clearly signed with the effective hours displayed.

Enforcement is the foundation of sound parking management. Without enforcement, systems designed to encourage turnover and deter employees from parking on-street are ineffective. Consistent, objective enforcement ensures that performance goals for the on-street parking system are met. Key metrics include duration of stay, turnover, and rate of violation.

Enforcement of loading and passenger zones (both vehicle type and time stay) is the most critically important change that the Department can make at this time. The data clearly shows that the majority of vehicles parked are private vehicles, and that they are parked there well in excess of in hour. The ramped-up enforcement program for loading zones should include the following elements as well:

The Parking Division of DPW should develop a reporting format that separates tickets by type. This ensures that total tickets issued are evaluated in the context of strictly parking related violations, versus tickets issued for non-parking related incidents (e.g., car tabs, warrants, etc.). The Department should consider intermittent use of courtesy tickets as a means to communicate downtown “parking rules and procedures” and to direct potential users into off-street city facilities.

Lastly the Department should Implement a routine process (every two years) for review of citation rates to ensure, at minimum, that enforcement revenue covers all operating costs and other performance metrics established for the enforcement program.

Use Freight Combination Stalls The City should employ the use of combination zones where the curb space is restricted to commercial loading from 7:00 AM to 2:00 PM, then converts to a paid parking stall through the end of enforcement hours (from 2:00 – 7:00 PM). This will maximize the use and efficiency of the curb space during times of high customer demand.

Issue Lane Blocking Citations Safety and traffic problems result when travel lanes are blocked downtown. During both 2016 and 2018 surveys, and consistent with the observations of the project team members, there are numerous incidents of vehicles blocking travel lanes. Survey staff observed that these violations were not being addressed; enforcement staff did not approach the drivers or vehicles. In follow-up conversations with Parking Division staff, it was made clear that the enforcement personnel would not approach such violating vehicles due to safety concerns. Arguably, the blocked lanes actually cause a safety concern for other motorists, cyclists, and pedestrians.

The City should develop safety protocols that enable parking enforcement personnel to ticket vehicles blocking the travel lane. The City should develop simple protocols that allow these enforcement issues to be addressed without sacrificing the health and well-being of employees.

Protocols may include practices such as:

Assessing conditions to determine if entering the roadway is safe (weather, speeds, site distances).

Use of safety vests and flashing LEDs at least when entering the roadway.

Training on how to identify a Safe Zones (areas near a vehicle with varying levels of visibility).



Asking that the driver come to the sidewalk for discussions with enforcement officers, rather than discussing in the street.

Use of whistles as with traffic control officers. (In some cases a loud whistle blow and a sharp look may cause the driver to follow the regulations without a citation being necessary).

This has been accomplished in other Cities. Most cities do not allow a travel or bicycle lane to be blocked without issuing a citation. The safety of local residents, visitors, and all other travelers is at stake.

Stop Commercial Control of Rights-Of-Way

Any commercial enterpise that seizes control of the public right of way should be penalized until it is discontinued. When municipal enforcement of passenger zones increases, the problem should be remedied so that the hotels no longer feel compelled to do this. As shown in Figure 16 Hampton Inn and the Marriott are claiming ‘ownership’ and control of the public street, and use signs that are intended to look official. Customers seeking a place to park are not able to decipher which regulations are ‘real’ and which are not. Other businesses simply use barricades to block the passenger zones near their business.

Change the Regulation of Specific Stalls

Loading zones occupy a large percentage of available curb space downtown. These include Freight, Passenger, Hotel, Taxi, and (generic) Loading. The 2016 parking study sample revealed that 26% of the park-able curb space was devoted to some form of loading. Some loading zones should be reformatted into publicly available parking stalls (2 Hour Metered), where a larger cross section of users (including customers) can access them.

The recommendations in Figure 22 were developed using the data and public input from the initial project and this 2018 supplemental effort. Factors that contributed to these reccomendations include:

1. Public and stakeholder input provided at public meetings,

2. Public and stakeholder provided through the online comment tool,

3. A reassessment of parking allocations at locations that have an excessive number ofd stalls deditaced to passenger loading and taxi stalls.

4. An assessment of freeight laoding needs, in areas with no freeight zones or in areas where delviery trucks often block a lane of travel.

5. Eliminating free, all-day parking stalls

6. Occupancy data and constrianed areas

The last factor, the occupancy data, was the primary driver of the reallocation. Much of the CBD has a constrained or nearly constrained supply (> 85% occupied). Additional parking capacity is needed for customers. The team identified unmetered areas that can be metered and identified numerous other stalls that are better used for customer parking. Altogether, the recommendations herein add over 100 new customer stalls downtown.



Recommendations for Consideration and Implementation:

The following set of recommendations is based on the data and process completed for the

original study and the 2018 Supplement. These recommendations may take a little longer to

implement or may require some changes in policy or installation of new meters.

Eliminate All No-Limit/ Free Parking On-Street As mentioned above, these stalls have been overlooked in previous metering efforts, or have changed as a result of construction or other disruptions. The resulting unregulated stalls are used all day by single non-customer users, likely employees. Not surprisingly No Limit stalls have the highest peak hour occupancy at 91%. Users stay an average of 3 hours and 58 minutes at No Limit stalls.

Table 6 Unmetered Spaces Recommended for New 2-Hour Meters

Location Between Stalls (estimated)

Notes

S Rampart St Canal St Common St 8

Perdido St Carondelet St Baronne St 8 Uptown side

Perdido St O’Keefe A Loyola A 6 Must be reviewed by DPW traffic

O-Keefe St Poydras St Past Union St 6 Lake side

Loyola St Poydras St Union St 22 River side

Union St Carondelet St Baronne St 5

Camp St Poydras St Natchez St 2

Poydras St Convention Center Blvd

riverfront 4 Used by taxis, unsigned, two rows deep in street

Gravier St Loyola Ave LaSalle St 11 (outside study area)

Natchez St Camp St Magazine St 4 Between other zones

Total New “Customer” Stalls 72

New meters should be installed in the areas shown here (Table 6). Not all the ‘free’ parking areas are shown in the table above, only those that are recommended for metering (approximately 90%). Other un-metered areas are adjacent to loading zones, isolated, or otherwise not appropriate for 2-hour metered re-designation.

Develop YOU’RE IN MY SPOT Cards In some cities, Customer First programs have been developed so that private businesses and residents can play a part in properly managing the parking supply. Employees should not park in customer spaces, and a program to ensure this could be launched by the DDD or DPW. Private businesses participate, and can demonstrate their support with a sticker in their window. These businesses can also sign a pledge, and help to softly police their neighbors.

A slightly more aggressive tactic would be to provide courtesy warnings, on small cards, that local businesses could use to help manage their own block face. For example, a large hotel with no parking is expecting a delivery of fresh linens, but there is a car parked in the freight zone. The business owner can put a card on the vehicle’s windshield, indicating the intended use of



the zone, the nature of the violation, and that City Enforcement has been notified. These could be provided to staff as well as to delivery drivers.

Charge for Private Use of Loading Zones Downtown retailers and hotels serve as critical components of visitor commerce in any large city, particularly a destination city like New Orleans. Allowing hotels or others to use publicly owned curb space to support business operations is a good use of those stalls. However, hotel operators should pay for the right to use those stalls. The price for each of those spaces (approximately 20 linear feet of curb space) should be equivalent to the (average) revenue generating value of a paid parking (approximately $8,237). The average value of a parking space is expected to increase over time as parking demand continues to grow throughout the downtown. As such, the annual cost of a hotel parking permit should be as dynamic as the average value of a parking stall. In other words, the annual cost to a hotel for a single dedicated hotel parking zone should be the same as the average value of a parking stall in the downtown.

Increase Citation Rates Rec # 11 Knowing the City somewhat recently increased parking fees, recalibrating the citation fees should be considered. Currently a parking citation is $40 or $302, nearly the equivalent of parking for 10 hours in an on-street stall (at $3.00 per hour). Citations should be at least 150% of the cost of parking all day on-street:

Example: $3.00/hour x 10 hours = $30 x 150% = $45.00 (minimum recommended citation fee) Citation revenue should cover all operating costs and future needs within the enforcement system (e.g., new personnel, new technologies, system replacements). In other words, parkers who obey the rules of parking in should not be burdened, through their parking rate, to cover the cost of enforcing those who violate the rules.

Protect Site Triangle Sevens Illegally stopped vehicles near to intersections cause numerous safety issues. This can be addressed by increased enforcement. Another solution is to make use of the space for something else that is aligned with City policy. But whatever occupies these spaces must not block site lines or worsen other issues. Green infrastructure, in the form of a small bio-infiltration feature can be an ideal use of these sevens, especially when a nearby drainage inlet can be incorporated into the design. These improvements can be constructed by maintenance crews with little need for advanced engineering drawings. However, these improvements would likely be cost-prohibitive unless the street was being reconstructed. The City could develop a standard for using these spaces for stormwater management. Once functioning, no one can park there and block site lines, the feature can help retain a small portion of each rain event, and the landscaping will provide an aesthetic enhancement for the CBD.

2 http://www.nola.gov/dpw/parking/parking-101/

Figure 19 Example of Urban Green

Infrastructure, San Francisco

http://www.nola.gov/dpw/parking/parking-101/



Look for additional opportunities for non-parking uses on the curb Consistent with the goals of the Master Plan, the City should develop a process by which property and business owners could request a reallocation of their immediate stalls. A restaurant, for example, may want to build a small parklet and provide additional outdoor seating. A bar may want to give up one automobile parking stall in order to have a bike corral which could accommodate a dozen bikes. Other uses of the curb include electric vehicle charging stations, scooter parking, green infrastructure and stormwater infiltration.

Figure 20 Parklets

Source: Parklet DC (left) Urban Gallery (Right)

Figure 21 Bike Corrals

Note - The project team is aware of the future need for additional loading zones to accommodate the proliferating ridesharing services and autonomous vehicles. However, it is premature to reformat the parking supply based on this trend, at this time. Also, the City is currently conducting a comprehensive assessment of Canal Street, and developing designs to mitigate the delay resulting from the loading activities at the major hotels. Changes to the parking supply on Canal Street, recommended in this report, should not be implemented prior to the completion of the Canal Street project, which will likely determine the best parking regulations for the corridor. https://www.nola.gov/city-planning/major-studies-and-projects/canal-street-study/

https://www.nola.gov/city-planning/major-studies-and-projects/canal-street-study/

https://www.nola.gov/city-planning/major-studies-and-projects/canal-street-study/



Figure 22 Recommended changes of current parking regulation

In order to provide all the recommendations on one figure, abbreviations and coding were used. Stretches of roadway, where the entire block face is recommended for additional metered spaces, are shown with the two lines (on Loyola Ave and O’Keefe Ave). The dots show more isolated changes, though some of these include many new stalls as well (e.g. twelve new stalls on S Peters St). Other changes are coded to show what is added and what is removed. For example, +2 METERED -2 PZ means that the 2 Passenger Zones are proposed to change to metered stalls.



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Documents

Report CBD Curb Use Study Report 2018-06-21 - NOLA