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Kansas City reversed River Market surge parking prices

After less than one week, the city decided to modify the ordinance due to public reception. Here are the changes.

event based parking sign in kansas city missouri rivermarket

All roads lead to paid parking.

Photo by @kcescapades

After public outcry, including a petition started by impacted small business owners, the City of KCMO has rolled back surge parking charges after barely one week of implementation.

These “long-term convenience premiums,” which charged up to $3.75 per hour ($40+ a day), will no longer be found in the River Market. Other downtown loop surge pricing remains, including street parking in Power & Light and the Crossroads.

Why charge now?

But why, after all this time, was our free parking oasis converted into a paid pad? According to the docket for the responsible ordinance, the change was made:

  • To help control downtown traffic (read: encourage use of ride-hailing + public transportation)
  • To generate more revenue for KC’s On-Street Parking program

Where is the money going?

The City of KCMO says “revenue generated from paid parking [...] may fund transportation infrastructure, public services, maintenance, and urban development projects.”

Now we have a question for you — where are you finding free parking downtown now? Let us know and you could be featured in a future newsletter.

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