The Downtown Victoria Business Association (DVBA) has partnered with Robbins Parking, The Pattison Group, B.C. Transit and the City of Victoria to open a park-and-ride facility north of the downtown core.

 

Available at $60 plus GST per month, the former 53-vehicle Metro Lexus Toyota auto dealership lot on Frances Avenue at Douglas Street will be opened up to commuters starting April 1st as part of a one-year trial period. Pending the success of the initiative, the DVBA may consider additional park-and-ride facilities.

 

For $40 more per month (plus GST) commuters can opt to add a full-fledged B.C. Transit bus pass to their monthly parking fees and utilize the regional transit system seven days a week.

 

In a release issued this afternoon, the DVBA announced that the organization has “heard business owners voice frustration that their employees do not have places to park” and is aware of issues stemming from the cost of parking.

 

By 2020 some 1,500 public parking stalls will have disappeared throughout downtown Victoria as surface parking lots make way for real-estate development efforts. Several hundred are expected to meet that fate this year. Meanwhile, the City of Victoria has no formal plan in place to add public parking capacity to the downtown area, although parking rates will be rising.

 

Commuters interested in participating in the DVBA's program can contact Robbins Parking to purchase a parking pass for the Metro Lexus Toyota lot. Early registrants will also receive their first month free of charge. C