And while the Mayor continues to wait for the tenders to go out for the Electric Buses Pilot Project, he is insisting that the parking meters pilot project is going as well as planned.
Back in April they launched the program with the intent to improve parking in the most congested areas of Belize City. Parking Meters were installed on Albert Street from its intersection with Orange Street, all the way to the Dean Street intersection. Parking meters were also installed on Newtown Barracks, from the exit of The Princess Casino, to Midtown Restaurant.
You'll remember how motorists immediately abandoned Albert Street because of the new parking fare, but recently, we've seen a lot more engagement with the new system. Here's how the Mayor made the point that the project is going well:
Bernard Wagner - Belize City Mayor
"The pilot project, the first quarter, has been completed. We have a one-year program. We receive some of the data. We have over 700 hours of usage on the Albert Street side, and that is about half, on Princess Margaret by the Digi Park. But we are very comfortable with the usage. We have to tweak the New Town Barracks area, obviously, to facilitate some of the vendors, those people that want to do business or conduct short-term business with those vendors. So, we are putting in place a plan to put aside a stop zone for picking up food and that sort of thing for those vendors at Digi Park. But, the Belize City Albert Street area is working pretty well. People are adapting to it. We see less congestion. You see a more orderly Albert Street. And that is the key thing here, though, is that the space is more equitably serving all the residents of the city."
