Op-Ed: Awful Injustice in Parking

Op-Ed: Awful Injustice in Parking

Misguided parking policy is harmful and unjust.

No surprise there, you may say. There is no shortage of complaints about parking prices ("unfair!") and about how difficult it is to find parking. We hear the same thing all over the world, whether in Sydney, San Francisco, Singapore, Moscow, Delhi , Jakarta, Beijing, Sao Paolo, Lagos or Nairobi.

Sorry to be unsympathetic. But complaints like those are a problem. They are fuel for the never-ending push for more parking and cheaper parking.

So what?

It is a problem because the push for cheap parking and more parking is a cause of terrible injustice in many cities.

Misguided, 'conventional', parking policy is creating real tragedy and injustice, especially in cities and towns across the global South.

Injustice? Surely I am exaggerating?

# # #

For the full text of this latest piece by Paul Barter in his Reinventing Parking blog at http://www.reinventingparking.org/2012/12/awful-injustice-in-parking.html

About the author:

Paul Barter is Assistant Professor in the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore where he teaches infrastructure policy, urban policy, transport policy and an introduction to public policy. He has published studies of transport policy in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. His current research interests are in innovation in transport demand management, public transport regulation, and contested priorities in urban transport policy. Paul is editor of Reinventing Parking.

# # #

About the editor:

Print this article