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Opinion: Burnaby added parking meters nobody asked for - now drivers might be getting a free ride

Area resident says some are Trans Mountain workers taking up spots commuters use so they can take SkyTrain

*This article has been updated.

The City of Burnaby added parking meters more than four years ago on the street heading north from the Lake City SkyTrain station.

The move really irked many commuters, who felt they were being punished for wanting to use SkyTrain each day.

“On top of paying … for a (Compass) pass, we would be spending an extra $100 a month just to park there,” Isabelle Forget told the NOW back in January 2018 after the meters were added. “It’ll certainly be a deterrent for me, so I guess I’ll revert back to the bus, which will extend my commute.”

Well, it turns out that perhaps only a few drivers are actually getting dinged – the rest could be getting a free ride because the city is not enforcing rules its own planners insisted on implementing.

I got a tip from Jack T., who also wrote to the City of Burnaby about his concerns that drivers are not paying for parking at metered spots near the SkyTrain station and the city isn’t checking on the meters.

I decided to find out for myself.

I dropped by six times over three different days this week and – yep – discovered that the vast majority of the meters were flashing as no time remaining (they are 12-hour meters for those who want to pay for an entire day).

Dozens of vehicles on both sides of the street sat in front of meters with the time flashing zero. Many of the vehicles were the same vehicles on different days. I counted only two or three drivers who had time remaining on the meter. Every single spot was taken on the street, which is much different than a few years ago when I used to drive by here on the way to the office. Back then, when the meters were new, most of the spots sat empty.

“I asked one of the guys coming back to his truck and he told me that all the employees know that Burnaby doesn’t check the parking so they park their all day for free and use it for staff parking,” said Jack. “This is unfair to those of us who want to park and use the train. I guess being honest doesn’t count for anything anymore.”

Now since this article first got posted, some people messaged me saying that these drivers could be paying by phone, which apparently doesn't show up on the meters, but we don't know because the city isn't checking on these meters, according to Jack.

Jack supplied me with a copy of an email he received from the city’s bylaw enforcement department that admits it isn’t always checking on its meters.

“Due to our limited resources we try our best to enforce the parking meters throughout the City of Burnaby,” said the email. “We are trying our best to enforce parking bylaws throughout the city at the moment.”

Jack said it’s not just a “moment” but has been going on for months.

As Jack pointed out, many of the vehicles have Alberta licence plates and this spot is about a 10-minute walk to the Trans Mountain tank farm. Jack says some of the site’s workers have told him they work at the tank farm.

This all feels ludicrous because the city was so adamant at the time that adding the meters was vital.

A senior transportation engineer with the City of Burnaby told the NOW in 2018 that parking meters being installed at Lake City were “an effective way to manage demands” and to ensure everyone has access to the parking spaces.

“Pay parking for premium spaces adjacent to SkyTrain stations also encourages commuters to consider alternative forms of transportation such as local transit buses, walking, cycling and carpooling,” he wrote. “Parking meters also generate turnover, so a single space can serve more users.”

Well, sure, but that only works if the city actually monitors the meters; otherwise it’s just a joke.

My hope is that the city sees this story and assigns someone to ticket any of the drivers who might be getting a free ride and taking up spots that others are willing to pay for.

That only seems fair.

Follow Chris Campbell on Twitter @shinebox44.