The City of Victoria is changing the way drivers pay for parking in downtown parkades to make the process faster and easier.
Instead of collecting a ticket when entering and paying when they leave, drivers will be able to pay using the ParkVictoria app or at a pay station, similar to the options for on-street parking.
The city is also providing an additional hour of free parking in the morning from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m., extending the free overnight parking period that starts at 6 p.m.
Parking rates in the parkades will be set at $2 per hour, with Sundays and holidays remaining free.
Free one-hour spots will be available on lower levels of parkades near the entrance to ensure short-term free parking continues.
Centennial Square parkade will be the first to transition to the new payment system on Monday, following a pilot project in the Johnson Street parkade in fall 2020.
The city鈥檚 five downtown parkades provide more than 1,800 parking spaces that are 33 per cent cheaper than the 2,000 on-street parking spots available.