Do apartment residents have enough car parking? An empirical assessment of car parking adequacy in Australian cities

In planning new apartment developments, off-street car parking provision is frequently raised as a key concern. However, there is little understanding of the adequacy of off-street car parking for individual apartment households. Drawing on a survey of apartment residents in Perth, Melbourne, and Sydney (n = 1316), this research assesses the adequacy of off-street car parking provision for apartment households and provides an understanding of factors associated with an undersupply and oversupply of off-street car parking. Results show that around two-thirds (65.9%) of apartment households have a 'balanced' amount of off-street car parking, where the number of cars owned is equal to the number of allocated off-street car parking spaces. The remaining households either have an oversupply of off-street car parking (20.2%) or an undersupply (14.0%), almost al-ways involving one parking space too many or one too few. Factors associated with an under/oversupply of off-street car parking are found to be largely related to household characteristics and residents' perceptions of parking issues. The findings highlight the potential for 'unbundling' off-street car parking from the purchase price or rental cost of apartment housing, while developing more tailored residential parking requirements that seek to prevent an under/oversupply of parking.

Automated summary

In planning new apartment developments, the adequacy of off-street car parking for individual apartment households is often overlooked. This research, based on a survey of apartment residents in Perth, Melbourne, and Sydney, assesses the provision of off-street car parking and identifies factors associated with an undersupply or oversupply. The study highlights the need for tailored residential parking requirements and the potential to separate parking costs from the purchase or rental price of apartments.