Engagement summary and survey results

About this project

The City of Kingston uses overnight on-street parking restrictions to respond quickly to winter weather. Plows are large vehicles, and it is safer, easier and more efficient to clear streets without vehicles parked on them.

In March 2022, City Council approved a pilot project that would see the City implement a winter weather-based parking bylaw. This bylaw introduced a weather-based approach to parking on Kingston’s streets during the winter:

  • During the months of December and March, overnight on-street parking is permitted, so long as a parking ban is not called in advance of winter weather.

  • During the months of January and February, a blanket ban is in effect and overnight on-street parking is not permitted.

How we engaged

Following two full winters of the pilot project, City staff gathered feedback from the public to inform recommendations for the future of overnight winter weather-based parking regulations in Kinston.

A survey was hosted on Get Involved Kingston from June 24 to July 12. The community was provided opportunities to engage online, by phone or by email. The Get Involved Kingston project page also asked for ideas to manage winter parking. Ideas were also received by phone or email. 

Engagement opportunities were communicated through social media, a news release and the Get Involved Kingston email newsletter. The survey was also promoted by external partners to their audiences. Social media posts had approximately 31,700 impressions and the newsletters were distributed to approximately 18,000 subscribers.

Who we heard from

Get Involved Kingston statistics:

  • 2,600 total page visits

  • 708 participants who engaged with us

  • 708 completed surveys

  • 15 ideas contributed

Respondents represent a wide range of areas across Kingston and beyond. They are broken down into the following:


District name

Number of respondents

District 1: Countryside

13

District 2: Loyalist-Cataraqui

76

District 3: Collins-Bayridge

46

District 4: Lakeside

49

District 5: Portsmouth

71

District 6: Trillium

73

District 7: Kingscourt-Rideau

46

District 8: Meadowbrook-Strathcona

31

District 9: Williamsville

48

District 10: Sydenham

51

District 11: King’s Town

75

District 12: Pittsburgh

106

Of the 708 surveys submitted, 685 participants lived within Kingston, and 23 participants were from outside of Kingston.

Next steps

Engagement results will inform staff’s recommendation to Council regarding the future of overnight winter weather-based parking regulations in Kingston.

What we heard  

The following are the results of the survey questions. Feedback that did not follow the City of Kingston’s Guidelines for Participation were omitted. Staff have also identified emerging themes in the feedback, the highlights and summaries provided below.

Q1: Are you aware of the current winter weather-based parking ban in Kingston?



Of the respondents, 686 (96.8 per cent) were aware of the parking ban pilot project. 

Q2: What kind of impact has the winter weather-based parking ban had on your household since the pilot began in March 2022? 

Of the respondents:

  • 429 (60.6 per cent) felt the parking ban had a positive impact on their household

  • 133 (18.8 per cent) felt the parking ban had a negative impact on their household

  • 146 (20.6 per cent) were unsure or could not recall the impact it had 

Q2a: If the restrictions have impacted you negatively, please explain how it has affected you. (Note: The survey question employed Skip Logic, which meant only respondents who selected “Negative” in the previous question were asked to elaborate on the negative impact the parking restrictions had.)

There were 129 responses to this question. Verbatim answers are available on the Get Involved Kingston project page. Responses provided fall into the following themes:

  • Compromised plowing operations concerns

  • Vehicles parked on the street reduce the effectiveness of snow removal and lead to snow banks, as plows need to swerve to move around illegally parked vehicles

  • People continue to park their vehicles on roads, impacting snow removal and leading to unsafe walking and driving conditions

  • Roads are slower to get plowed because of so many parked vehicles

  • The City should consider a 24-hour parking ban after a snowfall, or bans only in neighbourhoods that will be cleared

  • Plows don’t always come through streets overnight

  • If some streets are cleared earlier than others, they should be allowed to resume street parking

  • Enforcement concerns

  • People take their chances and park vehicles on the street regardless of bans, or would rather pay the fine than find alternate parking

  • Current ticketing isn’t enough of a deterrent

  • There is no enforcement at all and as a result, people ignore the ban

  • There don’t seem to be enough Bylaw officers to properly enforce parking and it emboldens a lack of respect for the laws

  • Vehicles shouldn’t be allowed to park on any City streets from December to March due to people not following restrictions. This would also mean people don’t need to check for restrictions before parking

  • Some people don’t understand the system or don’t check for restrictions

  • Plow operators should be able to give tickets

  • People have received tickets or been towed when there was no snowfall

  • Insufficient parking options

  • Many houses and apartments don’t have off-street parking, or don’t have enough parking to accommodate all occupants or visitors

  • Nowhere safe to park off-street

  • Night-shift workers are impacted

  • The City should consider a weather-based system from December to March

  • The City should consider alternating side of the streets for parking. It is irresponsible for the City to implement restrictions and not provide the community with alternatives

  • Safety concerns

  • Vehicles left on the road can create problems for emergency vehicles

  • Snow accumulation leads to reduced sightlines

  • With vehicles on the road and snowbanks, it is difficult to see and drive down roads safely

  • Illegally parked cars and snow accumulation narrow roadways and make it difficult to drive in one lane

Q3: Over the past two winters, did a vehicle parked on the road overnight prevent a snow plow from plowing a street and result in an impact on your neighbourhood?

Of the respondents:

  • 356 (50.2 per cent) said No

  • 251 (35.4 per cent) said Yes

  • 102 (14.4 per cent) said Unsure/Couldn’t Recall

Q3a: If a vehicle parked on the road overnight did prevent a plow from getting through, during which time periods did you experience an impact? Select all that apply. (Note: The survey question employed Skip Logic, which meant only respondents who selected “Yes” in the previous question were asked to elaborate on when a plow was prevented from completing its operations.)

Q4: Over the past two winters, do you remember learning about the weather-based parking ban in any of the following ways? Select all that apply.

Of the respondents:

  • 319 learn about parking bans through social media

  • 263 learn about parking bans on the City’s website

  • 253 learn about parking bans on the news

Q5: How many vehicles does your household have?

The breakdown of respondents is as follows:


Number of vehicles

Respondents

0

11

1

254

2

313

3

84

4

21

5

10

6

2

Q6: Do you have access to off-street parking?

Of the respondents, 631 (89.1 per cent) have access to off-street parking, and 77 (10.9 per cent) do not have access to off-street parking.

Q7: Where do you usually park your vehicles?

Of the respondents:

  • 484 (68.8 per cent) park their vehicles in their own driveways

  • 98 (13.9 per cent) park their vehicles in a garage

  • 91 (12.9 per cent) park their vehicles on the street.

Q7a: If on-street parking is not available due to the weather-based parking ban, what options do you explore for parking? (Note: The survey question employed Skip Logic, which meant only respondents who selected “On-street” in the previous question were asked where they park their vehicle during a parking ban.)

Of the respondents:

  • 41 park in their own residence’s driveway or parking lot

  • 28 take their chances and park on the road

  • 21 use another residence space (rental).

Q8: Are you in favour of continuing a weather-based overnight parking ban during December and March of each year? 

Of the respondents, 562 (79.2 per cent) are in favour of continuing a weather-based overnight parking ban during December and March, 116 (16.3 per cent) are not in favour, and 32 (4.5 per cent) are undecided.

Ideas responses

The following are comments submitted by registered Get Involved Kingston participants through the Ideas tool. Feedback that did not follow the City of Kingston’s Guidelines for Participation were omitted.

What solutions or alternatives would you suggest for managing parking in Kingston during winter weather?

There were 15 responses to this question. Responses provided fall into the following themes:

  • Alternate parking restrictions

  • Have a weather-based winter parking ban throughout the entire winter (December to March)

  • Alternate parking on one side of the street

  • Have a consistent, defined parking ban to avoid confusion

  • Increased enforcement

  • Improved/additional communication

  • Promoting alternatives to driving

This engagement has concluded. Council voted to implement the Winter Weather-Based Winter Parking Bylaw on Oct. 1, 2024.