Humble "free" parking is largely responsible for the catastrophic failures of postwar North American cities.
By Ryan McGreal
Apr. 14, 2005
Off-street parking requirements are a fertility drug for cars.
-- Donald Shoup, The High Cost of Free Parking
There is no righteous ire like the ire of people who believe they deserve something for nothing. In that light, don't expect many motorists to appreciate Donald Shoup's new book, The High Cost of Free Parking.
An UCLA professor in the Department of Urban Planning, Shoup dissects the economic, social, and environmental impacts of current parking regulations and proposes a new approach that can help free cities from the pernicious effects of auto dependency.
Originally limited to the curbside, parking was destined to become a scarce resource. Cars take up a lot of space, the total area of curbside parking is limited, and certain areas, like workplaces and commercial districts, experience peaks in demand when large numbers of people arrive at once.
Planners concluded that the solution was physical: create enough additional parking to offset the projected increase in demand. What seemed like good public policy at the time has been a slow-motion time bomb for cities. Too much parking is much worse, in the long run, than not enough parking.
When planners calculate how many parking spaces to provide1, they assume parking is free. Obviously, demand for a "free" service will be much higher than demand for a service that must be purchased. If people don't have to pay for parking, they are much more likely to drive.
There's just one problem: parking isn't free. In fact, according to Shoup, "the cost of all parking spaces in the U.S. exceeds the value of all cars and may even exceed the value of all roads." Parking costs billions of dollars a year.
Shoup is an economist, and it shows in the perspective he brings to bear. "[E]conomists do not define the demand for food as the peak quantity of food consumed at free buffets." Nevertheless, planners define the demand for parking as the peak quantity of spaces used when parking is free.
Developers simply pass the cost of "free" parking to property owners, who pass it to tenants, who pass it to all customers in the form of higher prices. "Off-street parking requirements encourage everyone to drive wherever they go because they know they can usually park free when they get there."
Huge expanses of asphalt push buildings far back from the street and away from each other. "Free" parking increases demand for driving lanes, which further separates destinations, making it difficult to get anywhere without a car. This further increases demand for more lanes and more parking in an insidious positive feedback loop.
Markets normally use price signals as negative feedback to contain demand. When demand goes up, the price goes up, and the higher price lowers demand. However, for price signals to work, the people using a good or service must be the ones paying for it.
Professor Donald Shoup kindly helps to subsidize your driving expenses
By breaking the relationship between use and payment, "free" parking eliminates the negative feedback that keeps the system in balance. As a result, everyone decides to drive everywhere, and the car crowds out other forms of transportation.
Even paid parking is often underpriced. In Hamilton, for example, motorists can park for 50 cents an hour at most curbside meters. Assuming about 60 square feet for a parking spot, that's six dollars per square foot per month - an order of magnitude lower than the equivalent monthly cost for a square foot of building space.
The tantalizing promise of underpriced parking leads motorists to cruise around the block until a spot opens up. In studies Shoup cites that analyzed traffic congestion, 30 percent of cars on the road were trying to find a parking spot.
Of all the transport systems available, including public transit, shipping, and rail, cars are unique in that terminal costs (doing something with your vehicle when the trip is finished) are offset to the rest of the economy. This "provide[s] a huge subsidy to motorists, and thus increase[s] the demand for cars, parking spaces, and vehicle travel."
Only walking, which has effectively no terminal costs, is comparable. All things being equal, most people would rather drive than walk. The problem is that all things aren't really equal; parking requirements just make it seem that way.
Worse still, "free" parking provides the biggest per-mile subsidy to the shortest trips, meaning drivers have a major incentive to drive to destinations they would otherwise be able to reach with ease by foot or bicycle. A huge proportion of traffic congestion is made up these short trips.
Shoup concludes cities should eliminate zoning requirements for off-street parking, end free municipal parking, and charge whatever price will maintain about 15 percent vacancy - the optimal rate to ensure easy entry and exit. To balance variable demand against a fixed supply, he recommends setting different prices according to time of day and day of week.
Anticipating the righteous ire of those drivers accustomed to free parking, Shoup notes that the biggest barrier to eliminating this subsidy is political, not technical, and proper implementation is critical.
The best way to implement market priced parking is for cities to remit all of the revenues from parking to what he calls "parking benefit districts", akin to business improvement areas. This way, decisions on how to collect and how to spend are made by the citizens most affected.
Bicycle parked against a parking meter
The benefits are potentially tremendous: with less parking, there is more room for both people and businesses, and the right balance between supply and demand means less congestion from cruising, less noise, and less air pollution. Reduced parking requirements also ease entry for investors who might otherwise build elsewhere. As the area becomes more appealing to pedestrians, it attracts both visitors and investors.
For Hamilton in particular, this kind of arrangement can provide the momentum and investment to restore and revitalize our beautiful downtown neighbourhoods that preceded cars and are already designed with pedestrians in mind.
Donald Shoup, The High Cost of Free Parking, American Planning Association, 2005, ISBN: 1884829988
By Macz
Posted 7/18/2006 2:36:53 PM
You should next do an article entitled "The high cost of not being dead"
This would demonstrate unequivocally that respiration is the source of all expenses with the notable exception of opportunity cost (which would be infinite).
By bj
Posted 7/18/2006 3:08:30 PM
If my downtown area started charging for parking, the next downtown (5 miles away) would get our business... charging for pakring would have to be implemented in unison across all cities of an urban area.
By aHack
Posted 7/18/2006 4:45:59 PM
You write that parking space in Hamilton Ontario costs "six dollars per square foot per month - an order of magnitude lower than the equivalent monthly cost for a square foot of building space."
In what city does office space go for $6/foot per month? It is about $2 per sf per month in downtown San Francisco right now, and that's in American dollars (see http://www.cityfeet.com/Search/Lease/SearchResults.aspx?PartnerPath=&SearchType=byL&GeoId=295&GeoName=%26nbsp%3b%26nbsp%3b-Financial+District&PropertyType=1&PropertyTypeName=Office&SizeMin=0&SizeMax=1000000000000&SizeMinName=0&SizeMaxName=No+Limit&LocationId=254).
Your statement also implies a 500-sq-foot studio apartment would rent for "an order of magnitude" more than $3,000 per month in Hamilton -- wow, expensive town!
By John
Posted 7/18/2006 4:48:56 PM
Well, bj, unless the parking is quite expensive, then they'd be idiots. Driving 10 extra miles (5 miles both ways) times $0.40/mile is $4.00 extra (ignoring the value of your time).
By cameldrv
Posted 7/19/2006 12:27:32 AM
I don't know where you're getting your lease rates from. Even in New York, office space can easily be had for less than $72/sq foot/yr. Perhaps you are confusing the commonly quoted price for office space as being a monthly rate, when it is a yearly rate. Certainly if one were to rent it out by the month, an unenclosed parking space at $72/ft^2/mo would be extremely expensive.
By Josiah
Posted 7/19/2006 12:37:25 AM
John, you have strange math. My car gets 30 mpg average. Gas cost $3 per gallon. This come out to $0.10 per mile. Driving round trip of 10 mi will thus cost $1. If parking is $0.50 per hour, then I would break even in cost by staying where I went for 2 hrs.
Speaking of ignoring the value of time, driving is much faster than walking. I walk at about 4 mph, and can drive at about 40. In a hypothetical walk 1 mile vs. drive 10, the time required either way is the same.
Driving takes less effort and the same time, but costs about a dollar.
By ardil
Posted 7/19/2006 6:04:39 AM
"In what city does office space go for $6/foot per month..."
...whereas the article talks about "equivalent monthly cost for a square foot of **building space**"
The confusion is cleared when one realises that every sq.ft. of building space can be converted to potentially many sq.ft. of office space, depending on the allowable floor space index.
By Urban Dave
Posted 7/19/2006 8:43:20 AM
Great article. I look forward to reading the book. Sorry that the previous commenters seem to be predisposed to rejecting ideas that they don't yet understand.
I saw a credible statement that a single parking space in a suburban office parking lot cost $1,000 per year. (It cost $1400 to build it, plus maintenance, and the lease cost of the land it sits on.) Coincidentally, that works out to the same price as the downtown parking garage fees that the companies are trying to avoid. It is nice to have the company paying the parking costs.
You see, cars (and the whole world that caters to cars) are a very expensive solution to our transportation needs. There are mountains of hidden costs. The subsidized costs hidden in government maintained roads is much higher. Search for "Cost of driving brochure" to see a pdf showing a TOTAL COST OF $1.19 PER MILE.
(To start: Divide a car's $20,000 price tag by 100,000 miles and you get 20 cents per mile just for paying for a car, its loan, and its maintenance. Gas at $3/gal and 30 mpg adds another 10 cents per mile.)
By Cassie
Posted 7/23/2006 10:40:38 PM
Wow! I find it comical that so many people defend so strongly driving their cars for short distances! Amazing. Such practices contribute to pollution, global warming, and in an era of obesity, walking/cycling is such an obviously valuable activity. Let's support the development of walkable communities and better public transit! Those cities are way more fun to liven in than car-dependent cities--I guarantee it.
By SkyForum
Posted 12/2/2006 7:21:16 PM
That's an interesting way to stop spammers, LOL "What do you get when you divide 12 by 3"
anyways, on to the topic.
I own a towing company in Denver. I think it's a tremendous article and it has a lot of merit. We have a very successful light rail system all through downtown here. ALL of the parking is pay parking unless it is specifically for someones store. I have many of the accounts for towing for many of these lots. Don't pay? get towed. I end up with your car. It's obvious the idea is to get people out of their cars. I also think there is some rule here that if you buy property in the downtown matrix, you must agree to NOT build another parking lot or you cannot complete the sale.
This seems like a very logical way to deal with Arrogant American and their car.
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By John
Posted 5/29/2007 3:23:43 PM
I find it interesting that the people who are harping the most about motorists are those who just can't afford a car. It's more about envy than environmentalism. Some of you guys talk like we live in a little village, where the doctor is around the corner, and the general store is up the street. When in real life the grocery store is six miles away, and your pannier bags only hold an oven roast and a bag of milk. And your doctor? He's in the high rise downtown. Yeah, let's walk there too. Who cares if it takes two hours to walk to go see your doctor for ten minutes. When you're unemployed, time is plentiful. Well, some of us work and thusly can afford a vehicle to help us make better use of the fewer minutes a day we have versus the hippies living in mom's basement blogging about how bad motorists are.
By nobrainer
Posted 5/29/2007 4:54:23 PM
Nice troll John.
I can afford a car but I choose not to own one because, let's see, (1) they consume non-renewable oil (2) they produce more than half the air pollution in our city (3) they produce greenhouse gases that are causing climate change (4) they are pushing our cities apart so that as you say the places you go get pushed apart to make room for all the damn cars.
It's a chicken and egg problem. When most people have a car we need to rebuild our cities so cars can fit, and the way we rebuild our cities means you need a car to get anywhere.
Sorry that your insecure ego is tied up in being able to afford a car and you can't see that connection. (See? it's easy to be an "armchair psychologist" John)
Maybe if you got out of your car and tried living in a real community--yes, they used to exist, they exist today, and there will be a lot more of them in the future--you'd see that lifes not about wrapping yourself in a big fat dildo with wheels but about placing yourself somewhere you can feel connected and meaningful and more fully human.
Nah never mind. Just turn on the 60'' TV you can afford because you're not a hippy living in mom's basement and drown it all out.
By Rusty
Posted 5/29/2007 4:57:12 PM
Hi John,
I drive everywhere. I also own my own car and have a job too. And I sometimes, 'harp on about motorists' for RTH too. Amazing eh?!
Sorry to disappoint you mate.
Also, to the best of my knowledge, none of the RTH writers live in their Mums basements or dress like hippies(except Jason).
I was going to answer some of your points but I've just realized I can't be bothered.
Happy driving!
Ben
By highwater
Posted 5/29/2007 5:23:03 PM
You're good John! I don't comb my hair and I spend alot of time in the basement. Doing laundry for my kids mind you, but still.
Of course the rest of the time I'm a soccer mom who likes to "harp on about motorists" on RTH in between driving my minivan and walking to the store.
Anyone have a nice recipe for pie?
By Ryan | http://www.raisethehammer.org
Posted 5/29/2007 9:45:35 PM
"Anyone have a nice recipe for pie?"
Wait until the peak of peach season this summer and pick up a bushel of ripe, local peaches. Wash and peel them, and cut them into smallish pieces (highly precise, my recipes).
For each four cups of peaches, mix in the following:
* 3/4 C brown sugar
* 1 C flour
* juice of 1/2 a lemon
Stir it together - not too vigorously or you'll break up the peaches - scoop into a good freezer bag, and stick in your freezer. (The more full your freezer is, the less energy it takes to keep your food cold.)
We usually do a half a dozen batches of pie mix and then slowly use them over the winter. By about March, pies made from this mix taste just like cream-sicles, especially when served hot with ice cream.
To make the crust:
2 C flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 C unsalted butter, softened *
2 T ice-cold water
1 large egg
1 T white vinegar
* You can substitute Crisco, which will make for a flakier crust, but I prefer butter because, well, it tastes buttery.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour and salt, and cut in the butter with two knives or one of those pastry butter cutter-inners.
In another small bowl, mix together the ice water, vinegar and egg. Then pour them into the flour/butter mix.
Stir just enough to combine them, but not too much, or else the dough will get stringy.
Take about half and roll onto a counter with liberal amounts of flour. Carefully slip this into your pie pan and cut off the overhanging pastry (but don't throw it out).
Then pour in your peach pie mix.
Finally, take the other half of the pastry, roll it out, and place it on top of the pie. Cut off the extra pastry again, and crimp the top and bottom together.
Poke a few holes into the top of the crust, and then bake, uncovered, in an oven at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes or until golden brown.
While the pie is baking, mix together the rest of your pastry and roll it out. Spread on some softened butter, then a thin coating of brown sugar, and finally a very thin coating of ground cinnamon.
Yes, you're making cinnamon rolls with the leftover pastry.
Roll the pastry up into a tube and cut it into sections. Bake them in a separate pan (one with raised sides - these puppies *run*) for about 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.
At this point, you're welcome to eat them as-is or drizzle them with an icing of your choice.
By markbarbera
Posted 5/30/2007 9:33:49 AM
Hey, John. You are making really baseless assumptions saying that the people who are harping the most about motorists are those who just can't afford a car, and that the harping is more about envy than environmentalism. Our annual household income is in excess of $120,000. We could easily afford a car, but we choose not to. It really is about making wise lifestyle choices. First off, when we went looking fo a home, our criteria included living somewhere where basic ameneties were within walking distance, and public transit was easily accessible. Coincidently, the housing in our area is drastically undervalued, and we purchased our beautiful century home at half the price of a house in the burbs. While we had initial trepidations about living in the downtown area (most media make it sound like it's a crime-ridden wasteland), four years after the move, we actually find our neighbourhood quieter and much more friendly that those of past suburban experiences. As an added bonus, we are saving huge chunks of cash by not making ourselves slaves to the automobile. It's incredible how a car can suck up so much cash every month - and most people allow it to drain their cash like they have no option. Well, you do. And John, because of the choice we made when buying our house, the doctor is around the corner, and the grocery store is up the street. And, my carbon footprint on this planet is much smaller than it used to be. And my wallet is thicker.
You have an extremely limited view of the world, John. Your obvious vindictive bias nearly caused me to laugh off your post, but I thought otherwise, because many buy into the false assumptions propogated in messages similar to yours. So instead, I share my story and encourage others to consider living downtown without a car is a viable option. Car-free living truly is care-free living.
By jason
Posted 5/30/2007 5:09:43 PM
Just got home from riding my bike to work... we own a car but it sat in the drive today. as it does 2 or 3 days a week when I ride my bike or take the bus to work.
We too have saved money, but not nearly as much as we could without a car. last time I checked it costs me around $8,000 a year to own my car (we're still leasing).
However, since moving downtown 6 years ago (when gas was around 50c a litre) our monthly allotment for gas has gone down...not up.
And we drive less km resulting in less wear and tear and (we hope) a longer life for our car once we buy it out after the lease ends.
On top of all that, we are in the best physical shape of our lives with all the walking and biking we do....the Market, Locke South, James North, Hess Village, Jackson Square etc...is all within a 10-15 minute walk. We too lived in the suburbs previously and will simply never go back. Living downtown has been amazing.
By highwater
Posted 5/30/2007 10:05:20 PM
ooo. Thanks, Ryan. Clipped and saved for peach season.
You can always do half and half butter and shortening for your crust. I actually prefer cheaper no name shortenings. They seem to make a flakier crust. Higher water content, I think. Just don't forget to chill it first.
Now here's one for you courtesy of Hmag. Impress your friends by cooking with weeds while at the same time helping reduce the noxious garlic mustard that's killing our maple forests and turning our woodland edges into monocultures:
Garlic Mustard Pesto
3-4 cups small garlic mustard leaves (picked early spring)
1/3 c roasted seeds/nuts (I used pine nuts, walnuts would be nice too)
1/3 c olive oil
10 cloves garlic
1/4 c grated parmesan
Process all ingredients in food processor to desired consistency.
This is VERY garlicy. I had some tossed with pasta before choir practise. BIG mistake. They're still not speaking to me. Next time I'll toss in some parsley as well. Also nice on bruschetta mixed with mayo and a little lemon juice, but only to be shared with very close friends.
By PRKGLDY
Posted 4/20/2008 10:52:56 AM
I'm fascinated by the rather confused stream of commentary above...mostly on how people choose to address the arguement put forth by Shoup. Each of the above have picked one or two random facts his article to harp on as opposed to addressing the overarching issue. Cities have done a very poor job at planning for parking. I think what's ingenious these days are how people are turning to the web (naturally) for their own solutions in light of the city's lack of adequate planning. Www.parkingspots.com is one that comes to mind pretty quickly - a locator for non-traditional parking solutions at lower then average costs. Once again, consumers are stepping in to take over where municipal planners never fail to disappoint.
It's money that we get which is very good, but it will cost us more money and that's the bad news. We can do some enhancements but we're going to have find some other resources as well, so we need to really deal with this very carefully." -- Hamilton Mayor Larry DiIanni, explaining why the city is reluctant to use gas tax money for HSR improvements
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By tom
Posted 7/18/2006 1:22:34 PM
A very illuminating analysis! Likely to be correct on many points indeed. Given that he's probably a socialist to some degree, I'm left to wonder if Dr. Shoup would have the stomach (and the intellectual honesty) to apply his flawless logic to healthcare economics. Agenda driven research, no matter how good, is usually a bad idea.
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