The Castries Constituency Council (CCC) has commenced the installation of ten solar-powered parking terminals on the streets of Saint Lucia’s capital.
Installation, training, signage, and other preparations are expected to take four to five months.
Castries Mayor Geraldine Lendor-Gabriel stated that there has long been a call for better parking in the city, which is constantly congested.
“People who come to Castries find it difficult to get parking, even for a short period of time,” Lendor-Gabriel noted.
She emphasized that the parking terminals will make parking more affordable.
The gadgets will accept coins and paper money and, in the future, can be programmed to accept debit or credit cards.
“The other option we will investigate is parking terminals.” It’s not just about parking. It can be used to issue tickets for any purpose, including buses, comfort stations, and vending, according to the Mayor of Castries.
Parking in the city would cost cars $3 per hour.
Each parking terminal would serve an entire street, but cars would be able to purchase a ticket and park elsewhere in the city.
“If you buy a parking ticket on Peynier Street, for example, you simply display it on your vehicle and you can park on William Peter Boulevard.” It does not confine you to a specific place. “It just gives you parking in the city,” the Mayor of Castries told the St. Lucia Times.
Landor-Gabriel noted that the various sites for the terminals were chosen to allow motorists quick access, preventing them from traveling a considerable distance to acquire paid parking.
The Mayor stated that enforcement would take place with the installation of the parking terminals.
“I don’t think we should even debate whether people should pay for parking because we’ve seen how bad it is in Castries.” “We need to improve the parking situation if we want the City to stay alive, to allow businesses and people who work in the City to continue earning a living,” she asserted.
For years, the Mayor said, there has been paid parking surrounding Derek Walcott Square, a high-demand location.
“It’s not something new. But, rather than tying individuals to a monthly price, we saw the need to expand it and make it more accessible and flexible,” Lendor-Gabriel explained.
The parking terminal initiative, according to Lendor-Gabriel, predates the present CCC leadership.
She told the St. Lucia Times that the gadgets were partially paid for by the previous administration.
“When we took office, the terminals had already been purchased and were sitting on the wharf, and we re-energized the project,” the Mayor of Castries explained.
