A new seasonal pay-parking scheme is set to begin at Belcarra Regional Park this week.
The new measure, which will run from April 1 until Sept. 30, will cost park visitors $2.00 per hour, with no time limit. No parking fees will be charged between 7 a.m. and 10 a.m.
The change in parking rules at the Metro Vancouver park come amid record visits. Belcarra Regional Park saw a January surge of nearly triple the number of monthly visitors compared to those in the first month of 2020.
Last summer, a spike in visitors and associated traffic led Port Moody and Belcarra to shut down roadside parking in a bid to stave off crowds at Sasamat Lake and White Pine Beach, which are part of the regional park.
By setting the hourly parking fee at $2, Metro Vancouver is looking to balance crowd management without sacrificing equity, said John McEwen, chair of Metro Vancouver's Regional Parks Committee and mayor of Anmore.
"This is not a revenue generator. This is a traffic management tool," said McEwen earlier this month. "We didn't want it to be more than a normal bus."
Parking fees will be invested back into the park and help with the cost of policing.
