Indianapolis May Privatize Parking Meters

The city of Indianapolis is considering whether to follow Chicago's lead and privatize its parking meters as part of a plan to raise new funds to pay for infrastructure improvements. The story appears at IBJ.com.

City officials are considering several modernization proposals designed to wrestle more revenue out of the city’s roughly 4,000 parking meters. They’re considering a range of proposals, including the possibility of a long-term lease to a private firm, a move that netted Chicago more than $1 billion last year.

One estimate pegs the value of a long-term lease of Indianapolis’ meters at more than $100 million. The meters already add more than $3 million per year to city coffers,, but proposals from private firms responding to a city request for information say that number should be much higher.