Public Transit Won't Work As Long As Parking Is Free
Even if Los Angeles builds a larger rail system, few will take it if parking is free, argues professor Donald C. Shoulp.
"Employer-paid parking is the most common fringe benefit offered to workers, and the cost of all this free parking amounts to about 1% of national income. Almost everyone who can park free drives to work, but taking away any fringe benefit is difficult.
There is an ingenious way out of this dilemma: Employers can offer commuters the option to "cash out" the value of their free parking. Commuters can continue to park free, but the cash-out option encourages them to consider alternatives to driving to work alone. Would you walk, bike, carpool or ride the bus to work if someone paid you to do it?"
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