parking peril

It’s estimated that parking spaces outnumber drivers three-to-one, say researchers from Purdue University in a press release issued last week. While the study was limited to Tippecanoe County, Indiana, Bryan Pijanowski the associate professor of forestry and natural resources who led the study believes it is representative of most mid-size counties in the United States.

The problem with having so much parking is the resulting polluting run-off, the heat absorbed by the parking surfaces and then released at night and the reduced replenishment of local watersheds.

Purdue University’s press release ends with Pijanowski’s suggested solutions for this problem: “combined-use or shared parking lots” and lifestyles that involve less use of automobiles.

Well, most Americans don’t seem to be ready to adopt European lifestyles. A more equitable solution might be to encourage developers to better design buildings and adjacent parking areas. Although more costly, parking structures are a better use of land and an option that would make more sense than “combined-use or shared parking lots.” The added costs to developers could be offset by tax or cash incentives.

Another focus should be better parking lot design, such as lots that are only partially paved with unpaved low-use areas could feature gravel or even grass.

Alternatives like these would allow Americans to continue the car-loving lifestyle they know and address some of the problems caused by excessive paving.

-oScar

Purdue University press release:
http://news.uns.purdue.edu/x/2007b/070911PijanowskiParking.html

USA Today news story:
http://blogs.usatoday.com/weather/2007/09/parking-up-the-.html

MSNBC news story:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20838931/

Technorati tags: automobiles, parking, pollution