Traffic Report 132009.1102.01

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     ~     The importance of communicating the benefits of a well-managed parking supply to different
           stakeholders.

     To ensure an appropriate and well-managed                   parking supply, it is important to understand the
     role of parking in the wider transport system. All transport systems consist of the following three

     basic components:

     ~     Vehicles   -



                          ego cars, trains and buses;

     ~     Rights-of-way     -



                                 ego roads, rail lines and bus lanes; and

     ~     Terminal capacity      -



                                      ego parking stations, yards, and bus depots.

     Almost all cities and towns in Australia have an oversupply of under-priced                         parking (most of
     them are free). This situation has largely resulted               as an     unintended consequence of minimum

     parking requirements.          This has contributed to a public perception that parking is and should

     always be free. Indeed, many people feel aggrieved in situations where they pay for parking, and
     efforts to reform parking can be met. with strong public resistance. In reality, parking is never

     free. By paying nothing for parking we end up paying more for everything else.

     While minimum         parking requirements vary from place to place, the underlying methodology is
     consistent. Minimum parking requirements are based on estimated average near-peak demand
     for parking dependant on the size and type of the proposed development. The developer is then

     required to provide this amount of parking on-site. Supply determined on this basis is based on
     the demand for "free" parking and without any measures in place to discourage excessive use of

     private motor vehicles; this generally results in an excessive amount of parking being required.
     Minimum parking requirements are based on the following assumptions:

     ~     Parking demands are both predictable and fixed                 -
                                                                              that is, they are easy to calculate and do

           not change significantly over time or space;


     ~     Parking is low-cost and difficult to charge for that is, parking requirements impose minimal
                                                                     -




           costs on developers and should be free to users most if not all of the time; and


     ~     Parking demands are associated with                 individual sites        -
                                                                                           that is, demand for   parking is
           associated with individual sites rather than being a function of the wider urban area.

     The oversupply of car parking spaces in town centres and growth corridors, resulting from the

     historical application of minimum requirements, has suppressed the market value of car parking

     spaces such that the perceived value of a car parking space is next to nothing.                         The current

     regulatory framework in the Council’s Planning Scheme is likely to continue exacerbating the
     oversupply of parking; it includes conservative minimum standards and makes it less onerous for
     developers to comply with these standards than to implement cost effective measures to reduce
     parking demand.
     Of   course   it is well understood that           charging for parking in some circumstances is not
     considered appropriate, but in those cases it is equally            inappropriate to oversupply parking
     spaces, which would in turn encourage excessive use of private motor vehicles. It is considered
     to be a better engineering solution to not oversupply parking spaces by allowing some flexibility

     on how and when to          apply the minimum parking rate for a particular development suggested by
     a   planning policy.
     On the Sunshine Coast this   parking oversupply has led to behavioural changes that have
     negative impacts on the natural social and economic environment. Minimum parking rates
     supplied by developers induce people to drive to centres rather than choosing other modes as
     well as drive within centres instead of walking within centres. This reduced average time spent

                                                  5102-oo2(1)-Car Parking Assessment                                 Page 3