REGINA — Regina’s executive committee introduced a new parking payment option on Wednesday.
During 2026/2027 budget deliberations, council passed a motion to remove coin payment options for parking meters to find $220,000 in savings.
The change took effect on March 1, leading to resident backlash, prompting Mayor Chad Bachynski to introduce an amendment to the city's traffic bylaw to implement a new voucher system.
“I think many of us received questions, comments and otherwise as the communications went out about removing coin-operated parking meters,” explained Bachynski behind the amendment.
He added, “We want to make sure there is an accessible option for all residents for parking where there is a need to pay for parking.”
The parking vouchers would be sold in batches of five for $13.75 at city hall (other locations will be considered in the future) and would be usable in paid parking zones for a maximum of two hours.
Any violations with the vouchers would result in a $75 fine.
City administration noted they’ll look into cases where people have to temporarily park downtown to obtain vouchers in the event a fine could occur.
Councillors Sarah Turnbull (Ward 5) and Victoria Flores (Ward 6) noted the Regina Downtown Business Improvement District and local businesses could also be voucher sellers.
Increases in parking fees:
Included in the approved budget, the city plans to raise parking meter rates to generate an additional $175,000 in revenue.
Regina councillors had the option to either choose a city-wide increase of $2.50/hour for all paid parking zones or opt for two different paid-parking zones.
The area east of Broad Street and South of Victoria Avenue would see parking rates decrease to $1.50/hour, while loading zone rates would increase to $3.00/hr or $5.00/hr.
Kurtis Doney, deputy city manager of city operations, said the zone-split encourages more people to park downtown.
"The utilization rate [east of Broad St. and South of Victoria Ave] is quite low, so our thought process is that if we have a lower rate, it will encourage more people to park in that area and those able can walk in the downtown.”
Councillors agreed to split parking zones, citing an overall increase in parking meters downtown as a killer for business.
Other increases in parking-related revenue for the city include parking violations (an additional $10/hr) and a 50 per cent rate for Temporary Street Use Permits.
Overall, city administration admitted increasing parking rates isn’t an option they support.
“Increasing parking rates will not have a positive impact on downtown,” said Doney.
Reflecting on slashing services, Flores said it’s important for council to consider the results of cuts in the future.
“By doing this, we forced administration to figure this out in a matter of a few months, which, of course, have the unintended repercussions we have seen.”
Ward 7 Coun. Shobna Radons echoed Flores's statement, stating that cutting services during budget doesn’t factor in engagement.
“This took away from the consultation of our community, downtown, and the warehouse district bid.”
City council will consider the traffic bylaw for final approval next week.
Upon approval, bylaw changes will go into effect on April 1.
