More transportation news

Cost cutting plans may see Golden Gate Bridge go completely electronic

Directors of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco are considering plans to replace all the human toll-takers with electronic toll collection points, making the bridge the state’s first all-automatic toll crossing.

Municipal workers better get with the program.

This one I have been waiting for:

With motorists circling the block to find elusive downtown parking spots, aldermen are proposing a “dynamic” solution.

It’s called “dynamic parking.” And it’s one of several ideas that East Rock Aldermen Justin Elicker said he hopes a new city working group on parking will consider.

Dynamic parking, invented by parking guru Donald Shoup, refers to a system in which parking fees rise and fall according to demand. For instance, during the busiest part of the day downtown, it might cost $2 to park for an hour. When there are fewer cars around, it might be only $1.

Though I have no idea how a guru invents the obvious. The next step is to dial in to the service from the cell phone so the driver is directed to available parking.