So am I a Shoupista? Have been since I started working d Beyond...


want to.And it works just fine. Big buildings with high rental values go up and get leased; the world does not come to an end. People use public transport. Yes, there are cars in central London, but they now cater for only about 12%of trips, the very high value of time being


people and those moving around goods and services or mak- ing multiple visits. (I remember one of the speakers inManila saying that it was a given that the CEO gets a parking slot. Who could you do without longest, the CEO or the mainte- nanceman?) So, as Professor Shoup proposes, we don’t build mind-


less parking lots because “it’s in the handbook.” We have moved past this and now minimize parking provision in new developments. What about public parking? In London, we have always


understood the on-street/off-street link, and meters have been premium charged with limited stay for 50 years or more. Pub- lic car parks by comparison offer cheaper long-stay parking virtually everywhere. Sure, the relationship is not perfect, especially when there are multiple providers, but anywhere where they have electricity, it’s pretty solid. In smaller towns, sometimes the county authority running


the streets decides to keep the street parking free, even though the town council is charging for the car parks. Interestingly enough, the countywill often spout a demandmanagement led transport policy but cannot be bothered to take on metered parking – “Do as I say, not as I do” personified. I can’t help but wonder if you in the U.S. would have ever


had this problemif you didn’t have such stupid coinage. If you had, say, a $2 coin half the diameter of a quarter and twice the thickness, would the problemever have arisen? I think not. And themoney? Professor Shoup is very keen on the idea


that if you collectmoney fromparking, then any excess should be recycled into the community, rather than disappearing into a general fund.We do this,more or less. The original law for parking meters was promulgated in


1969. Under that law, parking meter surpluses are ring- fenced and have to be re-invested into a defined set of initia- tives. This includes improving public transport and other stuff, such as road repairs and improvements, and improving the local environment. Now, in the absolutely pure sense that Professor Shoup


proposes returning the money to a neighborhood, we do not have exactly this neighborhood concept in public administra- tion, but hey, we did have the principle defined in law 50 years ago.


DECEMBER 2009 • PARKING TODAY • www.parkingtoday.com 41


in ‘72. Peter, Peter, Peter –You hear, but do you listen? First of all, Shoupistas believe that all requirements for park-


ing be removed,minimumandmaximum, and that the developer be able to decide how many spaces are needed for a particular type of development. London’s approach is still government control. Second, although in your central city (London) folks are


charged for parking, is it “market rate” and does the rate change with demand? I think not. I have many friends in London, and it appears that if you own property in an area, you can get a very low priced parking permit that allows you to park on-street in your neighborhood.This isn’t market pricing. Third, investing the money in rapid transit and


JVH, with his normal tact and wit, snarled words to the effect that I was talking through my hat.


“environmental” causes isn’t really returning the money to the neighborhood at all. Frankly, it’s a dodge to help the local politico’s pet projects. My guess is that if the people of London could actu-


ally see the results of the money spent for parking and parking fines, much of the problem with the unpopulari- ty of parking wardens and parking fees would evaporate like that famous London fog. (By the way, we here in the Colonies fare no better.


Don Shoup’s theories are in place in very few cities. As for your being a“Shoupista,” I would call you“Shoupista lite.”) JVH


Peter Guest is PT’s correspondent on all things European and Middle East. He can be reached at peterguestparking@hotmail.co.uk.


PT


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