Several buildings located across some of Sydney’s busiest suburbs are utilising less than one-third of available parking spaces, while up to thirty percent of traffic in congested areas is looking for parking spaces, according to a new report released by the NRMA and DIVVY.
The Smarter Parking Report, released to coincide with the Roads Australia Transport Summit, details the parking problems plaguing Australian cities and highlights the huge imbalance between parking supply and demand.
Currently, the average casual daily parking rate in Sydney is $70.85, compared with $18.21 in Canberra and $22.29 in Adelaide.
With even some of the largest institutional owners of car spaces forced to leave parking assets dormant – often due to restrictions and regulations – the NRMA and DIVVY looked at parking utilisation rates across seven Sydney buildings and found those that forbid public access had significantly lower utilisation rates than those that allowed parking non-tenants.
One building in Walker Street, North Sydney had just 32 per cents of spaces used, a Harris Street, Pyrmont lot had 74 per cent utilisation while a Clarence Street building had 20 per cent of spaces left vacant.
By contrast, the remaining four buildings audited across the Sydney and Parramatta CBDs that allowed public access all saw utilisation rates between 90-97 per cent.
Globally, Australia has some of the lowest ratios of car spaces to workers. The Sydney and Melbourne CBDs have just 12.2 and 14.2 spaces for ever 100 workers.
NRMA CEO Rohan Lund said; Members were frustrated with parking options and exorbitant costs in metropolitan areas right across Australia.
“NRMA research shows 44 per cent of drivers have returned home because they couldn’t find a parking spaces,” Mr Lund said.
“When two out of every five Members we survey tell us they are now often avoiding specific locations because of parking, we know access to parking is having an adverse effect on the economy, particularly small businesses who rely on accessibility.
“We now need to start thinking outside the square when it comes to solving our parking issues. We must find innovative ways to unlock more of the spaces that lie dormant every day, improve the last-mile for workers through commuter car parks and use available technologies to move toward smart cities.”
DIVVY CEO Grant Fowler said:
“Empty parking spaces represented the huge untapped potential for both businesses and frustrated drivers, helping to address Sydney’s parking shortage and opening an additional revenue stream for businesses.
“We know that up to 30 percent of the traffic in metropolitan areas is cruising for a parking space. Taking more of the parking volume off the street allows cities to move more freely,”
“Using technology such as DIVVY, businesses can become aware of the possibilities that now exist and parking assets no longer need to sit unused.”
“There are thousands of parking spaces that lie dormant every day and just as many drivers who are in search of a parking space. Businesses, along with all levels of government need to adjust their policies and planning so more of these spaces can open up for public use.”
Read the Smarter Parking Report Here or see what our partners at the NRMA have to say