Drivers in the city could soon face steeper fines for parking violations, with proposed penalty increases for more than 100 offences.
A new staff report, which will be presented to the Infrastructure and Environment Committee at a meeting next week, proposes hiking penalty amounts for 123 offences related to parking, stopping, and standing.
If approved, the fine for parking in bike lanes, for example, would increase from $150 to $200, while not paying the required fee at parking machines would jump from $30 to $75.
The current fines, the report notes, are out of step with the penalties for parking violations in nearby municipalities.
According to the report, in Toronto, most penalty amounts currently range between $15 and $60, which are “generally lower” than the fines for similar offences in surrounding jurisdictions.
“Most penalty amounts have been left generally unchanged (in Toronto) since their enactment and are not automatically adjusted for inflation,” the report read.
“The recommended increase in penalty amounts will ensure better alignment with penalty amounts in other jurisdictions, encourage compliance, ensure certain offences are set at levels commensurate with the seriousness of the offence, and ensure that offences within the same categories are set at the same penalty amount for consistency.”
Based on the volume of tickets in 2023, the city could see an additional $62 million in revenue as a result of the increased fines, though staff expect that actual revenue would be somewhere between $40 and $50 million.
The recommendations come after fines increased from $30 to $75 for drivers caught illegally parking on municipal and private property back in December.
If approved by city council, the new penalty amounts would come into effect on Aug. 1, 2024.
