Hourly parking rates in the City of Chicago are going up again today.
When Chicago announced its lease of the city’s parking meters to a private company more than a year ago, it also announced simultaneously the parking rates would be going up.

Today, rates increase 75 cents to $4.25 per hour in the Loop. In the neighborhoods, rates increase a quarter to $1.25 per hour.

When the meters were first leased, it was announced hourly rates would continue to increase for the next three years, eventually reaching $2 in the neighborhoods in the year 2013 and getting up to $6.50 for one hour in the Loop.

Meantime, as the rates have gone up, the company running the meters is touting the changes made to the system, such as a new way to dismiss parking tickets handed out for a malfunctioning machine.