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


Empty Parking Garage

Comrade Foot / flickr

"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

Lake Powell with much of the water evaporated.

Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River

Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.

October 30, 2026 - Yale Environment 360

A road in north eastern Nebraska with power lines on either side, and grassy fields.

Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity

Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.

November 6, 2026 - Grist

People walking in downtown St. Louis, walking past shops.

Move over, LA: St. Louis gears up for Olympics, invests millions in downtown redevelopment

The Missouri city will host the 2028 Olympic soccer group stage and knockout matches.

November 1, 2026 - Smart Cities Dive

construction near Boston, with machinery digging at large pit.

Mass. votes against statewide minimum lot size for single-family homes

Over 2 million residents voted on Question 7; it was decided by just over 30,000 votes.

November 10 - GBH

A bridge over the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland.

Maryland’s $15 billion bridge project gains key approval

The Maryland Transit Authority said the project will create over 60,000 jobs and add $23 billion to the local economy.

November 10 - WTOP News

A crowd of people cheering for an unseen performer.

‘No clear next steps’ for Chicago's permanent festival grounds

Eleventh Ward Ald. Nicole Lee has suggested Soldier Field as a possible location for the permanent event space.

November 10 - Chicago Sun Times

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.