ed That Garage? • Helping make more land available for other development


projects (e.g., commercial and residential developments). Enlisting the assistance of a consultant specializing in park-


ing planning and management assessments can help you deter- mine if an investment in additional infrastructure is truly war- ranted or if other strategies could be employed to improve park- ing utilization and efficiency or reduce needs. While there’s not enough space in this article to discuss


every alternative in detail, here are just a fewways a skilled park- ing consultant could help you decide if a new facility is right for your situation: • Conduct a Parking Supply/DemandAnalysis – This is


usually the first step in deciding if more parking is needed. This could involve a comprehensive downtown or campus-wide analy- sis or a more targeted site-specific study. This analysis would


• Implementing a valet parking program to improve the uti-


lization of available parking and to reduce visitor walking dis- tances. • Developing signage and wayfinding plans that help direct


visitors to appropriate parking locations. Available parking spaces can’t be used if drivers can’t find them. • Encouraging private parking facility owners to improve the


utilization of their facilities by improving signage and operations or by allowing public parking in underutilized spaces.Thiswould improve overall parking conditions and possibly help private facility owners generatemore revenue. • Creating a “parking cooperative” or a “parking collabora-


tive” to foster the creation of uniform parking management strategies and to improve coordination and communication between public and private parking facility owners.


• Improve the Efficiency of Existing


It’s crucial that every parking system explore all alternatives for addressing parking demands prior to constructing a new surface lot or structure.


help you determine whether surplus parking is available to meet current or projected needs; where the available parking is locat- ed;what user group types could be supported by the surplus park- ing supply (e.g., daytime versus evening demands); and if the available parking is publicly or privately owned. If the results of the parking supply/demand analysis show the need for more parking, you will know how much is actually needed – possibly saving tens of thousands of dollars over constructing too much parking or not providing enough. • Ensure Parking Requirements Are Reasonable – An


experienced parking consultant can review your current zoning code(s) to ensure that parking requirements are reasonable and flexible. Such requirements should utilize realistic ratios, encour- age shared parking, offer in-lieu fee options, and provide reason- able reductions for demand management strategies. The goal is to provide the “right” amount of parking! • Develop Strategies to Improve the Utilization ofAvail-


able Parking Supplies – If underutilized parking supplies are identified, strategies could be developed to improve the utiliza- tion of available parking spaces. This could include any of the following alternatives, but not limited to: • Developing marketing and communication campaigns to


help inform visitors and employees about parking issues and to direct themto locations with available parking spaces. • Adjusting parking rates in public parking facilities to


encourage appropriate parking behaviors (short-term versus long-termparkers) and to promote parking in underutilized facil- ities. For example, parking spaces in core areas or near primary demand generatorswould bemore expensive than parking spaces in perimeter areas.


Parking Lots and Structures – An experi- enced parking consultant can review the func- tional design of your parking facilities and on- street parking spaces to help ensure that they are as space-efficient as possible. • Investigate Opportunities to Improve


Parking-RelatedTechnologies – Conducting an unbiased parking technology assessment and integrating newtechnologies can help pro- vide better control over facility access and user


allocations; accommodate more flexible parking rate structures; and providemore information for parkers (e.g., variablemessage directional and available spaces signs) and systemmanagers. • ImplementAppropriateTransportation DemandMan-


agement Strategies – Encouraging the use of alternative modes of transportation could include a number of strategies such as providing adequate pedestrian and bicycle linkages/amenities; providing sufficient mass transit options/alternatives; subsidies for transit passes; encouraging the use of carpools and vanpools; instituting guaranteed ride home programs; encouraging telecommuting; setting up parking cash-out programs, etc. In reality, the greatest benefit would likely be achieved by


using a combination of strategies for dealing with parking demand.An experienced parking consultant can help you decide which alternatives are available and appropriate, as well as how to structure your response to growing parking demands. Carefully considering each of the available strategies will


allow a parking system to show that all applicable alternatives were investigated prior to constructing new facilities. This will enhance the system’s credibility in the eyes of their customers (both internal and external) and help improve community sup- port when a parking structure is truly needed.


Matthew Inman is Vice President of Studies and Operations Consulting at Carl Walker Inc. He can be reached at minman@carlwalker.com or at (480) 505-0088.


PT NOVEMBER 2009 • PARKING TODAY • www.parkingtoday.com 19


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