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14 AUGUST 31, 2017 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM Carshare pilot program set to launch in Ridgewood soon BY ANGELA MATUA AMATUA@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM @ANGELAMATUA The Department of Transportation (DOT) is looking to promote carsharing in the city and are launching a two-year pilot program in 15 neighborhoods to do so. Four Queens neighborhoods — Jackson Heights, Jamaica, the Rockaways and Ridgewood — were chosen for the pilot. Currently, the DOT is urging residents to visit its website and vote on specifi c corners where they think carsharing would be the most useful. In March, City Council passed Local Laws 47 and 50 to offi cially establish the carsharing pilot program. Once a location is chosen — the DOT focused on corners for “maximum visibility” and places where alternate side parking is in eff ect — those parking spots will only be used for carsharing companies. The city will announce the participating companies by the end of the year. The companies will also be able to use 10 parking spots or 10 percent of the spaces in municipal parking facilities. Carsharing allows residents to use cars for short rides and either return the vehicle to the same spot where they picked it up or at another Map courtesy of NYC Department of Transportation location within the company’s service zone. According to the DOT, the program is aiming to improve air quality and reduce congestion, shorten searches for parking, lower transportation costs and improve access to services. At a community board meeting in Glendale in June, a spokesperson for the DOT said the agency looked at similar programs in San Francisco, Seattle, Washington, D.C., Boston and Hoboken to study their best practices. The pilot programs included dedicating curbside parking spaces for carshare vehicles, and requiring carshare companies to expand their services into underserved neighborhoods. Aft er implementing the programs in these cities, between fi ve and 20 personal vehicles were either sold by their owners or they suppressed purchasing a personal vehicle for every carshare vehicle on the road. The DOT is also arguing that carsharing may actually increase parking availability. Dedicating 2 percent of on-street parking to carsharing vehicles, the DOT claims, could potentially open up nearly 13 percent new parking spaces. In Ridgewood, an area bordered by Woodbine Street, Myrtle Avenue, St. Felix Avenue and Irving Avenue, is up for consideration. If a person returning a car to a specifi c parking spot fi nds it occupied by a non-carshare vehicle, the carshare company has the authority to move it at no extra charge to the car owner. A notifi cation system will let drivers know where their car was relocated. The NYPD is also authorized to ticket and tow illegally parked vehicles. Carshare companies will also have to clean and maintain the streets that their vehicles occupy. 718-894-0400 �� Commercial and Residential Cleaning and Maintenance Specialists in cleaning all types of awnings and canopies. �� 60-68 METROPOLITAN AVE., RIDGEWOOD, NY Lt. Governor tours Maspeth businesses with lawmaker Photo courtesy of City Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul visited Maspeth on Monday, Aug. 28, and joined City Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley on a walking tour of businesses in the neighborhood. Joining them were Queens Chamber Executive Director Thomas J. Grech and Maspeth Chamber of Commerce President David Daraio. The group met with owners and managers from Maspeth Federal Savings Bank, the Fame Diner, Da- Bar Shoes, Rosa’s Pizza, Maspeth Town Hall, Home Hunters Realty and Merit Financial Partners. “The charming businesses we visited, and long-time residents we met, are what give this neighborhood its character. Maspeth is only fi ve minutes from the city, yet maintains a comforting small-town charm which adds to the vibrancy of Queens," Hochul said.