The World Figure Skating Championships, coming to London in March, are expected to make demand for downtown parking spots skyrocket.
And that means that from March 11 to 17, for those who are only in downtown London occasionally, it could be tough to find a spot.
Annette Drost, manager of parking and licensing for the City of London, says “There may be some that get inconvenienced, we hope the event is worth the inconvenience to our businesses and downtown.”
The city has about 238 spots downtown and private operators offer another 1,200, but there is some doubt whether that will be enough as spectators flow in.
Private operator Impark says it will charge a $10 daytime flat rate on Monday and Tuesday, and a $25 daytime event rate for the rest of the week.
City lots will continue to charge $8 day rates, Drost says, “City lots are business as usual, first come, first serve. The rates are the same as always.”
The city hopes enough people will use public transit, hotel shuttles and their own two feet, and Drost says “We do believe that parking will be sufficient.”
Some Londoners say they will avoid the downtown area during the event, but it may not be too bad, since it coincides with March Break when demand for downtown parking traditionally drops 20 per cent.
