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Should Construction Workers Get Free Parking?

Skeezix said:
I would disagree with that. Many Torontonians have to bring tools, paperwork, uniforms, equipment, etc. to work, but the vast majority of them don't get to close off part of the street to facilitate that. They pay for parking, lug their stuff on the subway, etc.
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Cute comparison. Please be here Monday morning at 7 to help me lug my 300lbs of metal working tools onto the subway. I'll even buy you lunch.

I agree with the sentiment that nobody should be entitled to special treatment and often side with parking wardens when they're in arguments with workers on the same site as me, but this idea that getting the tools, materials, etc to and from is like packing a weekender bag and tally-ho we're there is beyond ridiculous. In all honesty, I would love to be able to take transit to work....I'm sick of daily driving (it causes me quite a deal of mental anguish), but it's just not feasible. Nor is it always possible to unload all your tools and equipment at once due to space constraints and can be beyond inefficient to have to go back and forth between your station and your car.

PS: I go to great lengths (when required) to park legally while at work.
 
Indeed. The other side of the coin is that the vast majority of construction workers are not provided "free parking" and in general need to fend for themselves, which can often be rather difficult in certain neighbourhoods.
 
If their parking isn't blocking traffic, or adversely affecting anybody else, I couldn't care less where they park. Especially because, as @MTown mentioned, the construction workers are carrying potentially hundreds of pounds in tools, and they often need to return to their trucks regularly to pick up or deposit certain tools. I'm not trying to make their lives any more difficult if it doesn't adversely affect others.
 
gabe said:
I don't really care. I'm more worried about people taking photos while behind the wheel.
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Indeed. What a busy body.

104BusyBodyLogo.gif
 
MTown said:
In all honesty, I would love to be able to take transit to work....I'm sick of daily driving (it causes me quite a deal of mental anguish), but it's just not feasible. Nor is it always possible to unload all your tools and equipment at once due to space constraints and can be beyond inefficient to have to go back and forth between your station and your car.
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And to chime in on this, transit is also not an option because it doesn't open early enough for tradespeople to use (standard working hours are 0700 - 1500), and on smaller jobs there's also nowhere secure to leave tools and material so you get stuck using your vehicle as a mobile job box. Having a few hundred pounds of gear plus another few hundred pounds of material to lug around really does add some constraints to your day.

It's really not about 'free' parking, it's about leaving your vehicle somewhere that lets you get the job done. The guys in those photos seem to be abusing it, but you're also underestimating what most tradespeople are dealing with.
 
Yeah, that too. Once, I didn't have my truck due to repairs and was working on a job in King City. Show me how to get to King City from downtown Toronto, where I live, at 5 or 6 in the am using public transit and I will show you how to put 300lbs of tools in a weekender bag and throw it on your shoulder.
 
MTown said:
Cute comparison. Please be here Monday morning at 7 to help me lug my 300lbs of metal working tools onto the subway.
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I didn't actually suggest that you do. I also referred in my post to driving to work (pay for parking). No worries - nobody is expecting you to climb onto a streetcar with all your stuff. :)

MTown said:
I agree with the sentiment that nobody should be entitled to special treatment and often side with parking wardens when they're in arguments with workers on the same site as me, but this idea that getting the tools, materials, etc to and from is like packing a weekender bag and tally-ho we're there is beyond ridiculous. In all honesty, I would love to be able to take transit to work....I'm sick of daily driving (it causes me quite a deal of mental anguish), but it's just not feasible. Nor is it always possible to unload all your tools and equipment at once due to space constraints and can be beyond inefficient to have to go back and forth between your station and your car.

PS: I go to great lengths (when required) to park legally while at work.
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I don't disagree with any of that. But the contractor should arrange for the necessary off-street parking and/or facilities for such equipment. I'm also not saying that there can't be space for key vehicles in the street occupation zone (I think above I referred to vehicles required for the construction in one of my posts above), but most of the vehicles I see occupying curb lanes behind orange pylons are personal vehicles whose drivers I don't see lugging 300 lbs of equipment, or any equipment for that matter (when my office used to be next to a high-rise construction site, most of the guys seemed to be carrying coolers from the vehicles in the morning). It's the free parking which has got people annoyed, not vehicles being used by the trades. It's also smart use of the street by the contractors - sometimes people don't think when they park vehicles, leading to bottleneck and the like which could have been avoided had the parked vehicles been shifted to another location.
 
wopchop said:
Indeed. The other side of the coin is that the vast majority of construction workers are not provided "free parking" and in general need to fend for themselves, which can often be rather difficult in certain neighbourhoods.
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That's a very good point. The scofflaws are highly visible, and highly annoying, but the vast majority I am sure do park their vehicle in a nearby lot and pay.
 
Aw, come on! It'd be great exercise....I just really need a second person to help with the load. ;)

Yeah, I see guys trying to get preferential treatment all the time, but had to point out the absurdity of any and all generalisations regarding this issue.
 
whatever said:
And to chime in on this, transit is also not an option because it doesn't open early enough for tradespeople to use
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MTown said:
Show me how to get to King City from downtown Toronto, where I live, at 5 or 6 in the am using public transit
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Nobody said construction workers should all be using transit (unless I missed someone else's post). What I said is that the majority of Torontonians pay for parking or take transit, and there isn't an entitlement to free on-street parking.

whatever said:
It's really not about 'free' parking, it's about leaving your vehicle somewhere that lets you get the job done. The guys in those photos seem to be abusing it, but you're also underestimating what most tradespeople are dealing with.
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Yeah, but that doesn't necessarily entitle people, construction people being but one occupation who use and need vehicles, to occupy the public street to the detriment of others. But you are absolutely correct that people notice the guys who are abusing it, and there seem to be lots and lots of them, but the much greater number are undoubtedly conscientious about how they carry out their job.
 
What I'm really conscientious about is working as little as possible and regularly going on holiday....and parking legitimately, I guess. (Except 1 hr limits on side streets....even I think they can suck it on that one and am not the only one as parking wardens rarely enforce that one at our sites)
 
Skeezix said:
Nobody said construction workers should all be using transit (unless I missed someone else's post). What I said is that the majority of Torontonians pay for parking or take transit, and there isn't an entitlement to free on-street parking.
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Agreed - though you do see what are clearly construction workers on transit - particularly painters - who perhaps haven't got any tools (not really sure the story, but more than once, I've sat beside someone who clearly has been painting all day from the clothes/smell).

Though I've occasionally ended up on transit returning from a site to the office, if I've got no tools - always get a look in hardhat, safety vest, etc. Often I just walk, but occasionally a passing vehicle is convenient when you have a Metropass. Though invariably those working on site, have equipment to lug ... though occasionally the site is so close to the office, it's just simpler to walk, and push a trolley down the street.
 
MTown said:
Aw, come on! It'd be great exercise....I just really need a second person to help with the load. ;)

Yeah, I see guys trying to get preferential treatment all the time, but had to point out the absurdity of any and all generalisations regarding this issue.
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The secondary issue to this discussion is that it is clear that many construction workers do not see an issue with parking illegally. So even those that park legally will not stigmatize their coworkers who break the law.

My grandfather used a fridge cart, wooden boxes and bungie cords to bring his tools in from the truck. I'm sure there are more elegant solutions than 30 year ago but this solved the ability to carry hundreds of pounds of tools from a truck to a work area (and gave him the ability to bring it up stairs without the need for multiple trips). Not rocket science but shows where there is a will there is a way.
 
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