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Enrique Peñalosa, former Mayor of Bogota: "In no constitution, parking is a constitutional right." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3YjeARuilI&feature=youtu.be...
Bruno Moser, Head of Urban Design at Foster + Partners: The amount of space a car requires isa problem yet to be solved: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rUH63c1n0c&feature=youtu.be...
It seems like roughly the same goal could have been achieved by condemning a comic book store and turning the space into a park. Is there anything to this article that isn't just the observation "People like to go where parks are" repurposed into anti-car propaganda?
It isn't anti-car propaganda to point out that huge swaths of valuable public real estate are dedicated to providing free storage for empty cars, and to suggest that there are other uses that would be more beneficial to more people.
And parts of Philadelphia have a severe parking problem. I'm convinced that the only reason South Philadelphia works is because 1/4 to 1/2 of its population isn't at home at any one point in time. It's like sailors hot-bedding on a submarine.
So if you're going to be an urbanite in Philadelphia, you have to live your entire life in Philadelphia, in your neighborhood. Which is probably why so many of the people I knew there hadn't even been out of the state, say nothing about to other countries.
For some people, that's all they want, a provincial life. It's not for me. I grew up surrounded by people with that very same attitude, in a rural environment, that attitude of "why would you ever even want to go somewhere else?" I really don't see the difference of it in an urban setting and I really just don't like being around it.
But I'm getting sick and tired of being treated like I'm a complete waste of a person for that reason. Seriously, the title is "Why parking spaces shouldn't always be wasted on cars", meaning the other times it's still wasted on cars, but it's somehow ok. It's just a smug sort of attitude.
Philadelphia does not have a very good public transit system. It's fine if all you want to do is get to the center of the city, but to actually travel around the city it sucks. And parts of Philadelphia have a severe parking problem. I'm convinced that the only reason South Philadelphia works is because 1/4 to 1/2 of its population isn't at home at any one point in time. It's like sailors hot-bedding on a submarine.…
It's amazing how little this is practiced in other cities that should utilize available parking to its maximum.
Thankfully, my city has a better public transit system than SEPTA. At the very least, I don't have to buy a copper subway token from a machine that only takes paper money.
In Chiang Mai near Chang Phueak Gate a sizeable paved area in front of a few mini-stores and a Ford dealership every day after 6 PM turns from parking space into busy street food market. Struck me as efficient use of space.
> Other research suggests that cyclists may actually spend more than drivers at some kinds of businesses because it's easier for them to pop in often and unplanned. This is probably due to a shortage of parking spots.
and much more weather dependent. As long as the businesses if the affected area do not mind the change I see little reason to not do it.
> Other research suggests that cyclists may actually spend more than drivers at some kinds of businesses because it's easier for them to pop in often and unplanned. This is probably due to a shortage of parking spots.
It's impossible to have 'enough' parking spots. Induced demand shows that cars, like goldfish, always grow to fill the space they're given. It's politically difficult process, but just refusing to try to solve this problem (which leads to more New Urbanism-friendly locations) is often the right solution.
I wish valet parking was more prevalent. Does the additional real estate space from efficient parking lots/structures justify the labor cost of providing free valet to customers? Of course, the real solution lies in eliminating personal car usage altogether (e.g. Uber)
eg bicycles and walking
On a closely related note, I read a very interesting piece about "curb cuts" in San Francisco. http://www.spur.org/publications/article/2008-06-01/eye-stre... The image showing the difference between Park Slope (without curb cuts) and a stretch of Dolores street in San Francisco (with curb cuts) is really eye-opening. It's a bummer, because a lot of SF really is small and walkable, but you know, we really do spend a…
> Other research suggests that cyclists may actually spend more than drivers at some kinds of businesses because it's easier for them to pop in often and unplanned. This is probably due to a shortage of parking spots.
It's impossible to have 'enough' parking spots. Induced demand shows that cars, like goldfish, always grow to fill the space they're given. It's politically difficult process, but just refusing to try to solve this problem (which leads to more New Urbanism-friendly locations) is often the right solution.