just to clarify -- the hearing is NOT at the city council meeting which is at St. Paul's Church on South Side at 6:00 pm. The hearing is really the first step in the parking study that the city and parking authority have commissioned. Desman Associates will conduct the presentation and will provide the schedule for the study which we have placed a number of public meetings and a citizens committee to be sure the issue is fully vetted. I would encourage all interested individuals to come to this first session.

the parking study presentation will begin at 7:30 PM in the 6th floor conference room of city hall.

I think in addition to more parking as well as more time on some meters during certain business hours, it would be great if the parking policies were displayed more prominently. How often have I pulled into a metered spot and could not find any signs as to when the meter had to be fed and until what times.

If you get smart meters that can do variable pricing, you won't need to worry about having a maximum time. (http://bit.ly/gZA4io) It also makes sense for the garage to be cheaper than curb parking.

As far as the *current* meters go - ditch the "quarters only" thing. Gah! Sometimes I have eleventy billion dollars in dimes and nickels, and not a bloody quarter in the lot, you know? Very frustrating.

Pamela has a good point - the main things that stress people out about paying for parking seem to be
1) they may not have change
2) they may not get back to the car in time, and get a ticket.

Smart meters solve both of these problems. You can use credit cards at the meters Bethlehem is testing on Broad St, and you'll eventually be able to add more time to your meter from a smartphone.

This seems related:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/campus-overload/post/10-ways-colleges-encourage-students-to-ditch-their-cars/2011/09/22/gIQAQLPynK_blog.html

I hate having to pay for a meter just to run into the bank for a minute or buy some carmelcorn. Sell annual passes that then allow for free parking to residents. Sweeten the deal by holding a monthly lottery with a prize that is triple the cost of the annual pass. Press coverage would encourage others to buy the passes.

A very good solution to both encourage shopping and good will would be to have the smart meters in the Downtown district always give five minutes grace when you first pull in. That way, there's time to find that quarter (or run into a shop and get one), and the locals that are doing quick business can run in and out of a place easily. Face it, the folks that are doing a quick pickup are the ones that are contributing the most for the least fuss--they're dumping their money and running.

For out-of-towners, or just those from near by, that five minutes is a nice welcome--who doesn't feel gifted by finding a few minutes on the meter when they pull in?

It solves the issue of meters that 'zero-out' when there's still time left and the car pulls out too. If they zeroed, but there was still always that five minutes grace, there's not a lot to complain about. Since most meters aren't actually paid for the entire time they are in operation, the five-minutes is unlikely to have any real impact on the city's bottom line when it comes to parking revenue either.

Simple, uncomplicated, and while I don't have the footnotes, I've heard it works. Certainly, from my own resident perspective, I wouldn't mind...

I remember, back in the day, Bethlehem businesses used to give out parking tokens to patrons. These could be used in the meters, or at the garage. Spend money and time downtown and on your next trip, the parking will be free.

I have made several suggestions over the years. Parking slots must be located very near the user's destination (usually within view), or they are not useful for out-of-towners (who should be the primary customer focus). Parallel parking slots are also worth much less than head-in parking. Parking signage must be directed to out-of-towners, NOT to local residents.
Rear-of-lot parking (along Pine St. and Church St.) similar to what Somerville NJ did could be attempted, parallel to Northampton St. shops. I submitted a partial plan to Main St. several years ago.
Centre Square should be closed to traffic and made into a pedestrian mall. The four streets leading to the Square could then be used for angled, head-in parking. Dangerous traffic patterns in the Circle would then be eliminated, as an additional benefit.
Existing, underutilized lots (including P.O., Verizon, bank, government building along Ferry St., etc.) should be subject to intensive negotiations and lobbying to open up those spaces, expecially on weekends when they could be used for the restraurants.
Money to be wasted on big contractor projects with no commercial potential should be diverted to other uses, or (better yet) returned to taxpayers in the form of lower tax rates to encourage businesses to open and thrive in town.

If you buy a belly button lint bear at the Mercantile you should be able to put it on your dashboard and get free parking.