Proposed policy changes are based on tools the City has available today, considers global best parking management practices, aligns with City-wide and project objectives, and responds to challenges we hear from community members.
For more details on each change, please see the Proposed Policy Changes Report.
| Change 1 |
Expand pay parking in high-demand areas of the City to better manage parking turnover and demand. |
| Current State |
Observed occupancy tends to be near 100%, resulting in significant circling for an available parking spot. |
| Anticipated Future State |
Demand is regulated through pricing, ensuring that each block hits a targeted occupancy (with a sweet spot of ~85%) so that a few spaces per block are available at any given time. |
| Change 2 |
Modernize the Resident & Visitor Parking Policy, including expansion of spatial coverage, and adjustment of eligibility criteria and costs. |
| Current State |
Resident Exempt (RE) permits are available to residents living in housing with three or less units and select older multi-family buildings. Many residents are ineligible for permits despite needing access. |
| Anticipated Future State |
Regardless of housing type, parking permits are available for purchase for residents who need it. Permit rates will reflect demand for the space within a permit zone and can be adjusted on a regular basis to bring into balance demand and supply. |
| Change 3 |
Expand short-term loading zones for the efficient and safe movement of people and goods. |
| Current State |
Demand exceeds supply of loading zones, resulting in double parking, where vehicles park in general travel lanes, creating unsafe conditions. |
| Anticipated Future State |
More loading zones for people and goods, both in residential and commercial areas, reducing double parking, and improving safety. |
| Change 4 |
Provide more accessible on-street parking spaces in close proximity to shops, services, and key destinations across the City. |
| Current State |
Accessible on-street parking for people with disabilities is sporadic and occupied most of the time. |
| Anticipated Future State |
More accessible parking is provided at regular intervals near shops and services, including applying pay parking to high-demand accessible spaces, to encourage parking turnover. Provide an online map with all accessible public parking spaces to improve legibility and awareness of spots in the City. |
| Change 5 |
Enable unique special-use parking to ensure a wide range of curbspace needs are achieved. |
| Current State |
Most unique special-use parking needs are underserved (e.g., car-share, bike parking, and shuttle buses). |
| Anticipated Future State |
More space for special-use parking needs. |
For the purposes of this project, curb access and management of curb space refers to various policies, programs, infrastructure, and operating changes that result in more equitable and beneficial use of our curb space (the portion of the right-of-way adjacent to travel lanes that is directly beside the curb, often used for parking).
Figure: 1 Components of City right-of-way
Today in the City of North Vancouver, over 90% of the City’s curb space is dedicated to vehicle parking. This leaves less room for a growing number of other uses, including transit stops, goods movement, passenger drop off, and public spaces for people to use and enjoy.
There may also be a need for dedicated room for various road users to travel in the curb lane, including transit, active, and electric modes, including bikes, scooters, and vehicles. Reviewing curb space allocation through this plan can improve fairness, access, and sustainability.
What is ‘on-street’ and ‘off-street’ parking?
While the main focus of this work will be on the curb lane, some of the access considerations also relate to off-street areas adjacent to the curb.
Off-street space adjacent to the curb lane can also be better managed to support the development of our public realm (places for people), green infrastructure elements such as space for trees, storm water management, greenspace, and infrastructure required to support lighting, electric charging, and telecommunications.
How the City Manages curb space for vehicle parking today
There are a number of parking restrictions that the City currently deploys to manage parking.
- Unrestricted parking: For a large amount of the City, particularly in residential neighbourhoods outside of the regional City Centre, we generally have unrestricted parking (no signage, first come first serve).
- Permit restrictions: In areas adjacent to our commercial main streets such as Lonsdale, we have several areas with resident permit parking. The intention here is reduce external parking pressure on residential streets outside commercial areas and help residents with insufficient off-street parking.
- Time or vehicle-type restrictions: We also have time-limited and vehicle type restrictions. This is particularly the case in our busiest areas (for example in Lower Lonsdale). Time-based restrictions encourage higher turnover so more people are able to find parking near businesses. An example of a vehicle-type restriction would be a loading zones for picking up people, or dropping off goods.
- Paid parking: The City has a limited number of on-street paid parking spaces around the Lions Gate Hospital, which promote higher turnover by creating a cost to use the space for a limited amount of time.
The proposed policy changes listed below have been developed to address challenges we heard from the public during Phase 1 engagement last fall. These are the main items we heard and more information is presented in the engagement summary document listed as an additional resource below.
- It’s hard to find parking in our busiest areas
- Resident parking permits exclude the majority of our residents
- More convenient and safe loading opportunities are needed
- The supply of accessible parking is insufficient
- Changes in on-street and off-street parking policy need to be coordinated
- Curb space for mobility, storage, and public place-making requires ongoing conversation.
Learn more in the Phase 1 Engagement Summary Report.
The first step of the plan development is to gather input from the community to understand what is working well on our curbs, and what needs to be reassessed. This was undertaken in the fall of 2023.
We are now at Step 3 of engaging the community on Proposed Policy Changes, to support with the development of the final plan and phased implementation strategy.
Phase 1 – Building Awareness & Input | Winter 2023
Building awareness of the project and providing opportunities for the public to participate and share their needs.
Phase 2 – Develop Proposed Policy Changes | Spring 2024
Develop Preliminary Directions for the Curb Access & Parking Plan and share feedback received during previous phase of engagement. Review the
Phase 1 Engagement Summary Report.
Phase 3 – Community Engagement | Summer 2024
Inform interest-holders and community members on proposed policy changes and consult with these groups to determine implementation planning and phasing.
Phase 4 – Finalize the Plan | Spring 2025
Refine the Plan based on feedback and additional technical analysis, and present the Plan and associated Implementation Strategy to Council for endorsement.
Phase 5 – Implementation | Spring 2025 onwards
Follow the phased implementation strategy and deliver curb space changes.
Why are we proposing changes to parking policy?
Many of our existing parking policies date back to the 1990s. Finding parking is a daily issue we hear from all of our community members including seniors, parents, business owners, and visitors. There is such high demand in many areas that community members need to continuously circle blocks looking for available space, leading to congestion, pollution, and strains on community member’s time.
The proposed Curb Access and Parking Plan will improve parking availability in our busy commercial and residential areas.
What changes does the Plan include?
The City is proposing adjustments to best manage parking demand across the City.
Busy commercial areas will see a transition towards more paid parking, allowing community member to pay only for the time they need, before moving on and letting others use this valuable space.
In residential areas, we are expanding eligibility for resident permits as they are effective at prioritizing resident parking while still allowing visitors parking for shorter stays.
In mixed-use areas, we will be introduce paid parking except with permit. This allows residents of the area to park with a permit, and others to pay for the time that they are using.
What does the proposed primary regulation mean for each block?
These areas will include a mix of paid parking, permit parking, and paid parking except with permit. In many cases, there will be a mix of regulations based on demand and close by uses. Examples:
- 100 Block E 1st is expected to have a mix of paid parking and paid parking except with permit, to support access to businesses and maintain priority for residents.
- 100 Block E 18th is expected to have pay parking up to the laneway off Lonsdale and transition to time-limited parking except with permit to maintain resident priority.
- 200 Block W 4th will primarily have time-limited parking except with permit to maintain resident priority.
There will continue to be loading zones, accessible spaces, and other curb uses as needed on each block.
What are the key proposed changes to Resident and Visitor Parking Policy?
Resident permits prioritize parking close to home for those that live in the area. Typically, these areas allow non-permit holders (such as visitors) to park for up to 2 hours during the day and early evening, with no restrictions overnight (9pm–9am).
Currently, community members in most multi-family buildings aren’t eligible for a parking permits. While some have off-street parking, many must walk long distances. By expanding eligibility and creating larger permit zones (instead of the block-by-block permit areas of today), more residents will be able to park closer to their homes.
Our visitor parking policy remains largely unchanged, providing space for contractors and rental vehicles, and hosting visitors and out-of-town guests. Homecare support workers will continue to be able to access these zones, just like today.
How much off-street residential parking is currently not used?
While most community members use the off-street parking—such as driveways, garages, and parking lots-- available to them, we know some is used for storage, home gyms or offices. Roughly 20% of off-street parking spaces in the City is not used for parking. If utilized, this could increase our on-street availability for those who do not have access to off-street parking.
How much off-street public pay parking is currently not used?
There are over 2000 paid, public parking spaces in off-street parking lots in Central and Lower Lonsdale. Even at our busiest times of year, there is typically up to 40% available parking spaces in our off-street paid parking lots.
What are the proposed paid parking costs?
Recommended parking rates are based on regional trends and local off-street prices. In the region, on-street parking typically costs $3.00–$6.00/hour, depending on demand. App service fees add $0.10–$0.30 per session. The current rate near Lions Gate Hospital is $2.25/hour.
To improve availability across our City, a $3.00/hour rate is proposed— still below off-street prices and within regional norms. Cost adjustments, whether decreasing or increasing, may be made after the first year, based on demand. To ease in this transition, the first hour or parking would cost $1.00 until 2027.
What are the proposed permit parking costs?
Resident parking permits in the region range from $2.10/month to $39.65 per month, with CNV at the lowest rate of $2.10. In comparison, off-street parking in multi-unit buildings can cost up to $200/month in Lower and Central Lonsdale.
To better manage demand, on- and off-street parking should be seen as part of the same system. On-street spots are often more convenient, but if rates are too low, demand exceeds ideal levels and residents may struggle to find space. To encourage better use of off-street parking, staff recommend raising the base residential permit rate to $15.00/month ($0.50/day). This would be monitored through 2026 and adjusted in 2027 based on actual use.