Reframing the Parking Problem

Parking is plagued with misinformation and exaggerated importance, and parking policies are often based on the opinions — and behavior — of everyone except customers. Does your business district actually have a parking problem? Do the customers think there is a problem? How do you know?

Many times, infrastructure and policy decisions are made based on perceived problems rather than real problems, negatively impacting the health, environment, and economic and social vitality of the district.

This section explores the basics of parking supply, types, uses, facilities, policies, and supportive programming.

Resource Library

Physical Planning and Design:

• ADA National Network — Accessible Parking Design Fact Sheet
• American Planning Association — People Over Parking
• Eden, Elana (Planetizen) — Parking Benefit Districts Around the U.S.
• Edwards, John D.
  • (ITE Journal) — Changing On-Street Parallel Parking to Angle Parking
  • The Parking Handbook for Small Communities
• Federal Highway Administration — Contemporary Approaches to Parking Pricing: A Primer
• Gabbe, C.J and Pierce, Greg (Access Magazine) — The Hidden Cost of Bundled Parking
• Institute for Transportation & Development Policy — Better Streets Through Better Parking
• Institute of Transportation Engineers
  • Curbside Management Practitioners Guide
  • Technical Resources: Trip and Parking Generation
• Kavanagh, William (International Parking Institute) — The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and An overview of current accessible parking requirements
• Litman, Todd (Victoria Transport Policy Institute) — Parking Requirement Impacts on Housing Affordability
• Mobility Lab — ​“Unbundling” parking costs is a top way to promote transportation options
• Mouw, Isaiah and Matthews, Brent (International Parking & Mobility Institute) — Placemaking and Parking
• National Association of City Transportation Officials
  • Transit Street Design Guide
  • Urban Street Design Guide
• National Institute of Building Sciences — Whole Building Design Guide Parking Facilities
• New York City Department of City Planning — Parking Best Practices: A Review of Zoning Regulations and Policies in Select US and International Cities
• Peters, Adele (Fast Company) — These future-proof parking garages can easily morph into offices or housing
• Quednau, Rachel (Strong Towns) — The Parking Problem That Wasn’t
• Riedl, Matt (The Wichita Eagle) — Living in a parking garage? These unique Qichita lofts are the first of their kind
• Shoup, Donald (Access Magazine) — Parking Benefit Districts
• Transit Center — Abolishing Parking Minimums
• U.S. Access Board — ADA Standards for Parking
• Victoria Transport Policy Institute
  • Parking Management Resources
  • Parking Pricing

Programming:

• American Public Transportation Association
  • Autonomous and Electric Vehicles
  • Mobility as a Service
• Choi, Charles (IEEE Spectrum) — How Self-Driving Cars Might Transform City Parking
• City of Monrovia, CA — NTI GO: Leveraging emerging ridesharing services to expand mobility options
• Downtown Colorado Inc — 27 Ideas for Activating Vacant Space
• Experimental Station — Blackstone Bicycle Works
• Free Lots Angeles — Vacant Lot Activation Toolkit
• Millard-Ball, Adam (Transport Policy) — The autonomous vehicle parking problem
• Smart Growth America — Policy Primer: Parklets
• UCLA Complete Streets Initiative Luskin School of Public Affairs — Reclaiming the Right-of-way: A Toolkit for Creating and Implementing Parklets
• West Town Bikes — Ciclo Urbano the full service bike shop of West Town Bikes

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