Joliet's Outdated Parking Meters Going Away

JOLIET, IL - Will County residents know from first-hand experience that a weekday trip to downtown Joliet often means bringing along a bucket of quarters. Downtown's parking meters don't accept dimes and nickels, and they certainly don't take dollar bills. Thanks to recent action by the Joliet City Council, it will soon become a lot more convenient for people visiting downtown Joliet, although it won't necessarily be any cheaper.

The council agreed to spend $179,000 to install 19 separate pay and display terminals across the downtown. The expense will be charged back to the city's parking operations fund, according to a memo written by Joliet's corporation counsel Marty Shanahan.

In recent months, as a trial run, Joliet city officials installed a parking pay terminal over near the Rialto Square Theatre off Van Buren Street.

"The machines are very user friendly and almost maintenance free," a city memo states. "The new pay and display terminals accept coin, credit and debit cards as payment for parking ... The proposal to install nineteen pay and display terminals is $164,160. The annual price for software fees and service agreements for the nineteen terminals is $14,820. This brings the total proposal to supply and install nineteen pay and service terminals ... to $178,980."

What are Joliet's fees for downtown street parking?

According to data on the city website, Joliet's hours of enforcement for on-street parking are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday.

Joliet's parking meters are free on Sunday as well as after 5 p.m. during weekdays.

What are Joliet's downtown on street parking rates?

According to the city, Zone A is $1 per hour while Zone B is 50 cents hourly. The $1 per hour area is around Cass Street/Route 30 and north of the Washington Street railroad tracks between Joliet Street and Mayor Art Schultz Drive. The Zone B area that is 50 cents hourly is south of Jackson Street and north of Cass Street, between Joliet and Scott Streets. It also covers the area south of Cass Street and north of Jefferson Street between N. Eastern Avenue and Mayor Art Schultz Drive.

To learn even more about Joliet's parking lots and parking fees, visit this link to the city website here.

Images via Joliet Patch Editor John Ferak