Parking: Reflections for growing and developing cities

This briefing by WWF South Africa examines the urban and environmental impacts of parking infrastructure, specifically focusing on the transition from minimum to maximum parking requirements. It argues that oversupplying parking incentivizes private car use and increases greenhouse gas emissions, while providing case studies from the USA and UK to suggest policy reforms for developing countries like South Africa.

• Parking infrastructure consumes significant urban space and prioritizes automobiles over sustainable transport, with cars remaining stationary for up to 95% of the day. This oversupply creates an unfriendly urban landscape that obstructs walking and cycling.
• There is a direct link between parking policy and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In the USA, the annual cost of emissions from parking infrastructure is estimated to be between $4 billion and $20 billion, contributing to pollutants like sulphur dioxide (SO2).
• Minimum parking requirements, which mandate a minimum number of spaces for specific land uses, often lead to an oversupply and under-pricing of parking because they are typically based on peak demand and lack an upper limit.
• South Africa continues to use outdated minimum parking standards from 1985, which have contributed to urban sprawl and the proliferation of shopping centres. For example, a neighbourhood shopping centre under 5,000 m2 requires seven parking bays per 100 m2.
• Replacing minimum parking requirements with maximums can significantly reduce parking supply and emissions. In London, the implementation of maximum requirements led to a 40% reduction in overall parking supply.
• Effective parking management can generate substantial municipal revenue that can be reinvested into urban upgrades. In Pasadena, California, a 'parking benefit district' used revenues from meters and fines to fund street cleaning and pedestrian facilities.
• Portland, Oregon, serves as a model for comprehensive parking management by using 13 different management zones and substituting car parking spaces with bicycle parking at a ratio of five bicycle spaces for every one car space.

APA

de Vries, L., & Cohen, B. (2018). Parking: Reflections for growing and developing cities. WWF South Africa. https://dtnac4dfluyw8.cloudfront.net/downloads/wwf_2018_parking_reflections_for_growing_and_developing_cities_final.pdf

Chicago

de Vries, Leani, and Brett Cohen. Parking: Reflections for growing and developing cities. WWF South Africa, 2018. https://dtnac4dfluyw8.cloudfront.net/downloads/wwf_2018_parking_reflections_for_growing_and_developing_cities_final.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=de Vries |first1=Leani |last2=Cohen |first2=Brett |title=Parking: Reflections for growing and developing cities |publisher=WWF South Africa |date=2018 |url=https://dtnac4dfluyw8.cloudfront.net/downloads/wwf_2018_parking_reflections_for_growing_and_developing_cities_final.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{devries2018parking, author = {de Vries, Leani and Cohen, Brett}, title = {{Parking: Reflections for growing and developing cities}}, institution = {WWF South Africa}, year = {2018}, url = {https://dtnac4dfluyw8.cloudfront.net/downloads/wwf_2018_parking_reflections_for_growing_and_developing_cities_final.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }