So I guess I was officially outed as a transportation geek last night at ArbCamp.  As someone with a Master’s Degree in Social Work (Community Organization) I never expected to be doing this.  But I totally love it, so I guess that’s what matters.

Anyway, former Ann Arborite and Arbor Update founder Rob Goodspeed recently wrote an interesting post analyzing real time parking data in downtown Ann Arbor.  What he found was that the Maynard Street parking structure was only really at capacity around the lunch hour.  During other times, there were more spaces.

Mr. Goodspeed then makes some observations:

First, the vast majority of the parking lots and structures are almost totally empty the majority of the time. This means they represent a huge amount of inactive urban space.

Second, from the chart we can see that parking demand at the DDA’s prevailing price structure is very spiky, with extremely high demand only at limited times.

Perhaps it’s because like other seemingly scientific questions in urban planning the answer is not scientific but value-laden and political. (A similar question: How many freeways and/or lanes do we need?) And in Ann Arbor, the people want more parking.

I’ll let you read his analysis and decide for yourself if you agree with Observations 1 and 2.  As for Observation 3, it is often the case that decisions are made based on perceptions and politics, rather than just on the raw data.

I have had the privilege of hanging out and working with Megan Owens of Transit Riders United from time to time.  She just sent out this message that I thought I should pass along to you:

Bad news – efforts to increase transit funding this year have died.

Good news – the bills allowing and supporting a non-profit Woodward streetcar line passed.

A huge thanks to everyone who called and wrote their legislators and helped spread the word.  Many legislators did get the message and there was a buzz about there.

We’re not done.  We and our partners plan to start again early next year, and we continue to need your help:

1) Please join/donate today.  We can’t do this work alone and we can’t do it for free.  Please give what you can.

2) Write a letter to the editor of your local paper, call into your favorite radio show and/or comment on related blogs [ahem] and online forums.

Help make sure that with every pothole, every late bus, every icy road, people remember that our legislature was this year unwilling to invest in Michigan’s transportation infrastructure!

3) If you’re in the Detroit area, join us at a Transit Policy meeting on Wednesday, January 14 at 6pm at the TRU office to strategize for next year.

Thanks.  Enjoy the holidays and get ready for an exciting new year!

Megan