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Europe takes a U-turn on parking

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Europe takes a U-turn on parking


By Michael Kodransky and Gabrielle Hermann

Institute for Transportation & Development Policy: http://www.itdp.org/documents/European_Parking_U-Turn.pdf


Executive Summary

"For much of the 20th Century, cities in Europe, like cities in the rest of the world, used parking policy mainly to encourage the construction of additional off-street parking, hoping to ease a perceived shortage of parking," observe Kodransky, global research manager for IDTP, and Hermann, a consultant to the organization.

In the past few decades, many people "grew tired of having public spaces and footpaths occupied by surface parking," they say. "In dense European cities, a growing number of citizens began to question whether dedicating scarce public space to car parking was wise social policy, and whether encouraging new buildings to build parking spaces was a good idea."

"No matter how many new parking garages and motorways they built, the traffic congestion only grew worse, and as much as 50% of traffic congestion was caused by drivers cruising around in search of a cheaper parking space," according to the authors.

Europe's Parking U-Turn reviews the experiences of ten cities that have reoriented their parking policies around "alternative social goals." Examples come from across western Europe: Amsterdam, Antwerp, Barcelona, Copenhagen, London, Munich, Paris, Stockholm, Strasbourg, and Zurich.





Findings In Brief

"Some recent parking reforms are driven by the need to comply with [European Union] ambient air quality or national greenhouse gas targets. Other new parking policies are part of broader mobility targets encouraging reductions in the use of private motor vehicles. While London, Stockholm, and a few other European cities have managed to implement congestion charging to reduce motor vehicle use, more are turning to parking.

"Every car trip begins and ends in a parking space, so parking regulation is one of the best ways to regulate car use. Vehicles cruising for parking often make up a significant share of total traffic. Other reasons for changing parking policies were driven by the desire to revitalize city centers and repurpose scarce road space for bike lanes or bike parking.

"The amount of parking available in a city is heavily influenced by public policy. On-street parking is governed by municipal or district policy, and off-street parking is generally controlled through zoning and building regulations. These are ultimately political questions: how much parking is built in new buildings, and how much public space should be dedicated to motor vehicle parking as opposed to other uses.

"The impacts of these new parking policies have been impressive: revitalized and thriving town centers; significant reductions in private car trips; reductions in air pollution; and generally improved quality of life.

"Progress in Europe on parking reform should not be overstated. Most cities still impose minimum parking requirements on developers, and few cities have imposed maximum parking requirements. While a growing number of cities have mandated charges for both on- and off-street parking, they generally charge rates that are too low."




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