Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In

Today on the Streetsblog Network, Austin Contrarian counts the ways that too much parking can damage a downtown:

2559723208_231dc14e64.jpg(Photo: Amber Rhea via Flickr)
  1. Parking raises the cost of new development, which means less of it. This may be no big deal  for a city with a built-out downtown, but it is a big deal for Austin, which devotes so many downtown blocks to surface parking or stand-alone garages.
  2. Parking not only raises the cost of new development, but it limits their size and density. An on-site garage can only be so big to be practical.  A developer who wants to provide enough on-site parking to cover peak demand must first figure out how much parking he can build; only then will he know how much he can build of whatever it is he wants to build.
  3. Parking garages and surface lots blight the streetscape, triggering a negative feedback loop:   the surface lots and garages make streets less attractive to pedestrians, which drives the pedestrians away, which reduces demand for pedesestrian-oriented retail, which makes the streetscape even less attractive for pedestrians, etc.
  4. Subsidized parking -- i.e., parking provided below cost -- distorts the market, encouraging an inefficient mix of driving and transit use.
  5. Plopping ever more parking downtown increases congestion. The amount of land devoted to streets is fixed. The amount of parking is not. Increasing the number of parking spots but not the amount of street space means more cars per square meter of street, which in turn means more congestion. (This very interesting paper (pdf) by Michael Manville and Donald Shoup explores this argument in depth.)
  6. Parking garages and surface lots are butt-ugly.

Elsewhere around the network: St. Louis Urban Workshop notes an apparent disconnect in the thinking of  Christopher Dodd (D-CT), chair of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.

The Overhead Wire asks why the U.S. can't match India's commitment to funding new Metro systems.

And Human Transit wonders whether we should ride mediocre transit systems just because they need the "vote" we cast when we hop aboard.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Friday’s Headlines Put the Pedal to the Metal

How is Denver's e-bike rebate program working out? David Zipper went to see for himself.

November 1, 2024

Public Transportation is On the Ballot Across America

Here are just a few of the races we'll be watching on Tuesday.

November 1, 2024

How Great Could Bay Area Public Transit Be?

A short summit brought together a who's who of advocates, officials, and leaders to talk about their vision for the future of public transportation in the Bay Area.

November 1, 2024

Even Families of Rock Stars like Billy Corgan Aren’t Immune to Chicagoland Traffic Violence

This was at least the third time since June that a driver crashed into a Chicagoland restaurant, shutting it down.

October 31, 2024

Talking Headways Podcast: Transit Wins and Co-Benefits from Climate Work

Julie Eaton Ernst and Cris Liban on the co-benefits of transportation, the evolution of the definition of transportation and making change in small steps.

October 31, 2024
See all posts