Regarding the article “Car lifts proposed to ease parking” in the April 4 edition:
Ald. Eugene Schulter’s plan to expand the installation of mechanical car lifts in public and private parking garages has got to be about the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard. The issue is not the lack of parking; it’s the overabundance of cars.
Creating more parking capacity does nothing to address the fundamental public policy issue, which is traffic congestion. In fact, it makes it worse by encouraging people to drive rather than bike, take public transportation, walk, etc.
A more defensible policy stance would include increased funding for the CTA; enforcement of crosswalks, red lights and bike lanes so that people walking or biking to work will feel safe doing so; and a commercial and residential master plan to allow people to live in close proximity to where they work so that parking is never even an issue.
