Urban parking reform means less pollution

Parking. It is so baked into urban and suburban landscapes it’s practically invisible to most people.  

Yet it is something SELC has been paying attention to for years.

“It’s been estimated that there are about 2 billion parking spaces in the U.S.,” said SELC Land & Community Program leader Trip Pollard. “Parking policy isn’t exactly a lively conversation topic, but it has tremendous impacts and there are common sense reforms that offer significant environmental, health, and equity benefits — and localities across the South have begun to change antiquated ordinances.”  

Parking reform network 

Tony Jordan thinks a lot about parking.  

“Parking policy is one of those 99 percent invisible things that has a huge impact on how we live and move around,” Jordan said. “There is plenty of evidence that the parking policy status quo is harming people and our ability to make progress on big problems, like climate change and housing affordability.” 

Jordan, from Portland, Oregon, started the nonprofit Parking Reform Network in 2019 to educate the public about the transformative power of parking reform and to arm advocates with mapping tools and other resources to push for policy change.  

Parking policy is one of those 99 percent invisible things that has a huge impact on how we live and move around.

Tony Jordan, Parking Reform Network

“Until recently, no one was working in a concerted effort to make these changes,” Jordan said. “Given the momentum and impact we’ve had with the limited resources and short history of PRN, I think the real change is still yet to come.” 

Launch PRN’s interactive map to discover your city’s parking score and learn more.

A more walkable Birmingham 

Birmingham, Alabama is the latest Southern city to axe mandatory parking minimums. Residents, small business owners, and city leaders said removing outdated parking policies would improve Birmingham’s air quality, reduce flooding, and create more opportunities for less expensive housing, shops, restaurants, and more community focused uses.  It also helps to promote cleaner transportation alternatives such as transit.   

“The thing about transit reform is that it’s never just transit reform,” said Daniel Christiansen with Alabama Urbanist Coalition.  

Christiansen describes parking lots as “non-places” that remove green spaces, reinforce vehicle dependency, and make people more isolated. “Seemingly simple items like parking requirements or lot size requirements can have wide ranging consequences to how we live, consequences that are often overlooked,” he said.  

In May, Birmingham’s City Council voted to approve the Right Size Parking Initiative and amendments to eliminate outdated mandatory parking minimums, increase bicycle parking, and encourage large developments to incentivize alternative transportation. Parking currently takes up about 26 percent of the available land in downtown Birmingham.

In parts of Birmingham, up to 50% of residents don’t even own a car. Those folks are forced to pay more for goods, housing, and services in order to subsidize unnecessary parking lots.

Chris Betrand, Associate Attorney

The new reforms are likely to cut tailpipe emissions by reducing driving, lower the temperature of heat islands, and reduce impermeable surfaces that cause flooding after rain. And transportation is the largest source emissions, so the reforms should reduce climate pollution as well. And parking is an equity issue.

“In parts of Birmingham, up to 50% of residents don’t even own a car. Those folks are forced to pay more for goods, housing, and services in order to subsidize unnecessary parking lots,” explained SELC associate attorney Chris Bertrand, who worked alongside Alabama Urbanist Coalition pushing for city leaders to pass the legislation. “By eliminating this outdated law, we can turn acres of unused parking lots into businesses and create a healthier and more prosperous downtown that puts people first, not cars.”   

Change across the South 

Birmingham joins a growing list of Southern cities, including Atlanta, Raleigh, and Richmond that have removed or modified mandatory parking requirements. 

Critics of the parking reform movement voice concerns that cities may experience a scarcity of parking spaces that will harm residents that rely on vehicles. Jordan said businesses will still build parking lots, but only when it’s good for business instead of complying with sometimes arbitrary laws. While the potential is transformative, change won’t happen overnight. It can take years or even decades for parking lots to be sold or redeveloped.  

“Parking policy is like a little domino that knocks over a bigger domino that eventually knocks down a giant one,” Jordan said.  “The solutions are so logical and simple and they clear hurdles to building the kinds of places we know people prefer to live, work, and play in.”