Carless Renters Still Get Stuck With a $440 Million Bill

A new study provides evidence of how the incredibly high costs of parking get spread around—even to people who don't have cars.

1 minute read

August 20, 2016, 1:00 PM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


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"Many residents of American cities can’t escape the high cost of parking, even if they don’t own cars," writes Angie Schmitt. Proof of that expensive problem if found in a new study by C.J. Gabbe and Gregory Pierce published in the Housing Policy Debate journal.

"Thanks to policies like mandatory parking requirements and the practice of “bundling” parking with housing, carless renters pay $440 million each year for parking they don’t use," explains Schmitt to summarize the findings of the study. "The financial burden works out to an average of $621 annually per household, or a 13 percent rent premium — and it is concentrated among households that can least afford it."

Schmitt also shares the policies recommended by Gabbe and Pierce to address that cost burden, at the full article linked below.

Friday, August 19, 2016 in Streetsblog USA

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