Parking in Center City: Fewer Spaces, But Less Demand

It sounds like a conundrum: Philadelphia has few parking spaces in garages and surface lots than it did in years past, yet it is still easier to get a spot. How can this be?

This map from Philadelphia Parking Inventory shows all the available parking in Center City.

City planning workers in Philly undertake a parking census every five years to determine how many parking spaces are in the city. On the latest survey, according to Plan Philly, the number of off-street spaces in Center City has decreased by seven percent, or about 3,000 spots. Blame the construction boom: as Center City becomes more and more densely occupied, developers are finding that it makes sense to level parking lots and garages in favor of high-rise residential and commercial space. Now, some of these buildings end up replacing some of the parking – but not all of them, and usually the new parking spaces are meant only for tenants.

So what does this mean for the people of Philadelphia? It’s not quite as much of a disaster as you might thing. Studies show that more city dwellers are apt to take their bikes, call an Uber or taxi, or use city transit to get around in lieu of driving their own cars. This is a trend that has increased in recent years. Consequently, even though there are fewer parking spaces, there is also less demand for the spaces still existing. The end result: it is easier now to park in Center City than it was five years ago!

A piece in Greater Greater Washington deemed Philadelphia to be progressive in that it actually counts the parking spaces that it has, making it easier for city planners to anticipate parking needs and act on them.