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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- Utah's largest city on Friday joined a small, but growing, list of municipalities nationwide that offer free parking as an incentive for people to buy fuel-efficient vehicles.
Salt Lake City is now offering free metered parking to Utahns whose vehicles get 50 miles per gallon, have low emissions or are powered by an alternative fuel that could reduce the nation's dependency on foreign oil.
Utah already offers an income tax credit of up to $3,000 for residents who buy clean fuel vehicles and some electric hybrids. It also allows those vehicles to use high occupancy vehicle lanes at any time.
Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson said providing free parking would further encourage use of those vehicles.
"It's yet another piece of the puzzle," Anderson said.
The Salt Lake City Council approved the free parking program last year, and Friday was the first day permits could be issued.
Salt Lake City joins New Haven, Conn., Fresno, Calif., and Albuquerque, N.M., in the free parking meter program. In the past year, Austin, Texas, also approved a green vehicle incentive that provides $100 in free parking.
Commuters in Baltimore who use low emissions vehicles can also buy parking passes at city-owned garages at a discounted rate.
In Utah, about 3,500 vehicles will qualify for the free meter program, said Dan Bergenthal, city transportation engineer.
The city expects to lose, at most, $8,500 in revenue from the parking meters, which are primarily found downtown and cost $1 an hour. Drivers will still have to move their cars when time on the meters expires. The city prohibits people from continuously feeding meters.
Anderson said he hopes that cleaner fuel burning vehicles will reduce Salt Lake Valley smog, which can prompt health advisories for children and people with respiratory problems.
Cars, buses and trucks are responsible for about 65 percent of air pollution in Salt Lake County, according to the Salt Lake Valley Health Department.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
