If you want to reduce congestion, increase the cost of public parking argued UCLA Professor, and Parking Policy Cult Hero, Donald Shoup at the recent "It's Time to Get LA Moving" conference.Shoup pointed to studies done at UCLA showing that a lack of available parking, and drivers choosing to sniff out a cheap space rather than pay the extra couple of dollars for a garage space, leads to an extra half mile of VMT per trip...over the course of even one day that adds up to a lot of extra car travel in an area.
The answer? Increase the cost of parking at meters so that less people will be willing to pay. By pricing meters high enough that there is almost always 10-15% available in a given area, people will drive less choosing to either park in a garage or by being able to park closer to their destination.
Even without the damage to the infrastructure, Shoup argues that low cost public parking is an inefficient use of public resources. Or, as he calls it, "some of the most valuable real estate in the world used to store private property."
But, wouldn't there be huge opposition to such a plan? The professor points to what's happened in Boulder, CO. Responding to a traffic glut in its downtown, the city created a "Total Transportation Improvement District" where they began to charge a premium for parking and used the revenue to provide free transit to the downtown. The combination of expensive parking and free transit revitalized the city's core and reduced traffic congestion by allowing people a safe, free alternative to get to the city's shops and other attractions.
While congestion pricing and HOT Lanes continue to get much of the media attention in our local press, we should remember that our roads and highways aren't the only thing that is over priced.
2 comments:
This is what happens in New York. It's not the toll in the morning, nor the traffic that keeps people from driving for the most part. It's the $25 to $50 for parking. The Central Business District is the most, due to the most congestion (which means the most paying customers). This works REALLY well in New York. ANd it's easy, and it adds to the local economy. I mean, you charge that much for parking at a Lakers game, shouldn't they be charging that much all over to achieve some improvement to the environment (by reducing congestion, etc. etc.)? I don't really see a down side.
I still find it frustrating—to state the least—that the L.A. Metro provides a annual $27 million cut of the straphangers' budget to offer free towing to motorists. That is certainly the opposite to what is happening in Las Vegas.
I have heard too much about how angelinos will drive no matter the cost, but I nevertheless would prefer that $27 million be put toward buses (no, not trains; do not get me started) rather than enabling private citizens' to continue screwing up the roadways (and more) with their decrepit motor vehicles.
-BusTard
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