Meter Funds & Broken Meters

Steve Hymon writes about parking meters in his column today. He talks about Dr. Donald Shoup's study on parking problems, which cites Westwood as an example. Solutions: Raise the meter rates and hours of operation which will force more turn-over and therefore, more spaces. (That's correct - good solution.) But, Hymon reports an error. Regarding the way to sell this increase in rates and hours to the public, he writes:

In other words, don't dump parking meter revenue into the city's general fund
but use it to improve the neighborhood.

The fact is: The monies put into a meter in Los Angeles don't go into the General Fund. All of those nickels, dimes, and quarters go into the Special Parking Revenue Fund. This fund is used to maintain the meter operations and what's left is used to address parking needs by creating off-street options. So, in Westwood, that parking structure that was built across from California Pizza Kitchen on Broxton was funded through the coins from the adjacent meters.

Also, in regards to "Metergate" as he calls it...
The way to fight a tiocket for parking at a failed meter that then resets after you've left your car is to report the broken meter BEFORE you get the ticket. So, if you pull up to a meter that's "failed," call it in before walking away - every meter should have the number to call on it. They'll ask for the meter number and if there are other spaces available. If there's not (which there probably isn't), they'll note that you called at a specific time about a specific meter in case it does reset and you do get a ticket. Simple, right? The process is in place - no need for the "Hymon Hoopla."