Boston parking limits ignored

Neither city nor EPA check whether lots observe cap on spaces

Cars are parked on a busy day at Pinstripe Parking in the North End. In 1985, there were about 100,000 downtown workers who drove to work, according to US Census data. Now more than half a million people commute by car to jobs in the city daily.

On a routine Tuesday morning, a caravan of idling, honking cars jerked into the Fitz-Inn parking lot on Newbury Street. Cars inched their way past a city-issued license placard that read, "Fitz-Inn Auto Park, Capacity: 71."

By 11:42 there are 73 cars in the lot. At 11:56, with 81 cars (14 percent over the licensed limit) a worker finally waved off the waiting line of cars and placed an orange cone signifying the lot was full. The last car parked was half on the sidewalk, half under the propped-up tollgate. Motorists who had been wating in line zoomed off to try their luck elsewhere.

This scene is repeated at parking lots all over the city on weekdays, say city officials, as parking operators frequently exceed licensed capacity with virtually no inspections or enforcement by the city.

The overcrowding in city lots makes it likely that the city routinely exceeds a regulatory cap of about 35,000 commercial parking spots available to the public, a limit negotiated between Boston and the US Environmental Protection Agency in the 1970s. The intent of the limit was to reduce congestion and smog in Boston by cutting the number of cars in the city. The air would be cleaner, and more people would use mass transit.

But in the three decades since it was adopted, both Boston and the EPA say they have lost track of precisely how many spots are licensed in the city. What's more, city and federal officials say they do not have the manpower or organization to effectively enforce limits posted on individual lots.

As a result, lot operators continue cramming in excessive cars, charging rates that are typically $10 an hour, or $32 a day.

Kevin Fitzgerald, owner of the Fitz-Inn lot on Newbury Street, said he operates a few lots in the city that "can hold more than their licensed capacity" when motorists are looking for free spots.

"If Newbury is absolutely full, I can get in three more than it's licensed for," he said in a phone interview. "I have one in the Theater District that's licensed for 89, and it can hold approximately 100."

Fitzgerald said he does not worry much about getting cited by the city, because there are no routine inspections. City officials say they have no idea how often the city exceeds the 35,000 cap.

Operators are "cramming more in the open air lots - crush parking, as they call it - that may exceed their lot over what's permitted," said Brian Glascock, director of the city's Department of Environment,

Carl Spector, executive director of Boston's Air Pollution Control Commission, said that inspections are done only occasionally by the commission, and he suggested that motorists have a tough enough time finding parking in Boston as it is.

"Parking is expensive; there is a need for supply," Spector said.

Another agency that is empowered to conduct inspections and issue citations to lot operators is the city Inspectional Services Division. Tim Holmes, the division's senior data process system analyst, has a printed list of parking lots that is about 9 inches tall.

"I really don't know how many parking spaces there are," he said.

The EPA said it has also taken a hands-off approach to the parking maximums and has not sought to pressure the city over its lack of enforcement.

"What we maybe thought was a good idea in 1975, maybe we don't now," said the EPA's New England senior enforcement coordinator, Christine Sansevero. "We have the ability to enforce it, but . . . it's almost a technicality that we have the authority."

The matter had a greater sense of urgency in the 1970s, when in response to air pollution limits Boston adopted its parking cap. Hartford and Baltimore built parking lots around their city limits to encourage bus and subway use, as did Boston, while California tightened auto emission controls. Even as the EPA has relaxed its vigilance, cities all over the US continue to experiment with ways to cut down emissions and congestion.

New York City's mayor, Michael Bloomberg, proposed an $8-a-day congestion fee for drivers entering Manhattan, though the idea died this month at the state's capitol. In Washington state, Oregon, and Maryland, where parking spaces were once required for workers, businesses can opt for cash incentives or transit passes for employees to discourage driving to work. In Maryland, drivers of electric vehicles receive excise tax reductions of up to $2,000.

In recent years, Boston's air quality has received failing grades, and the number of cars has increased too, say environmental watchdogs. Suffolk County, which encompasses most of Boston, received a D grade last year from the American Lung Association in its "State of the Air" report, which showed seven days of unhealthy ozone levels.

In 1985, there were about 100,000 downtown workers who drove to work, according to US Census data.

Now more than half a million people commute by car to jobs in the city daily.

The trend dismays activists.

"From their construction, to fueling them, to the whole oil business - the entire industry of car culture is using a lot of resources," said David Watson, executive director of the Massachusetts Bicycle Coalition. The only way to avoid "putting greenhouse gases into the environment is by leaving your car alone," he said.