Metra Parking Fees to Increase Tuesday

Effective Tuesday, it'll cost an extra quarter to park in New Lenox's Metra parking lots. 

On April 9, the Village Board , raising the cost from $1/day to $1.25. Village Administrator Kurt Carroll said the primary reason for the increase is that the village spends more money maintaing the lot than it gets back in revenue.

According to the village's most recent survey,only 30 percent of the Metra lot users are New Lenox residents. That means the rest of local taxpayers have been subsidizing the cost of the lot for non-residents. 

"You can't ask the taxpayers of New Lenox to use something primarily used by non-residents," Mayor Tim Baldermann said. "We know any increase is hard, but the taxpayers of New Lenox have been funding that lot for years."

To help residents avoid having to carry cash and coins, the village will offer the option of a token system that’s recently been adopted by Tinley Park and Mokena, which  to help pay for various upgrades.

Commuters would be able to purchase sheets of 10 tokens at  and the Metra stations. You will still have the option of paying in coins and cash. 

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