PHILADELPHIA CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT PARKING RATE EXPERIMENT

The Philadelphia Central Business District (CBD) Parking Rate Experiment is one of the elements of DOT's Urban Corridor Demonstration Program. The Program's purpose is to maximize the use of transportation related facilities with a relative minimum expenditure of capital. This particular project was designed to investigate public response to an experimental rate structure of an off-street parking facility. This would provide the short-term (non-commuter) parker with a marked rate advantage so as to stimulate transient-type activity at the expense of the all-day (commuter) parker. Additionally, this project demonstrated the capability of the proposed rate structure to act as a mechanism for increasing the turnover rate (utilization) of such a facility. Data collected for the period Jan. '70 to Oct. '73 was evaluated to determine how natural rate changes affected the general parking behavior. Two garages were chosen for this analysis on the basis of their different locations within the Phila. CBD. A sensitivity analysis was conducted. According to the authors, changes made in the rate structures showed that the objectives of the experiment were accomplished. Rates favored the short-term parker while long-termers have shown decreased usage over most periods. Turnover rates have increased thereby requiring potentially less new parking space construction. The economic viability of both facilities was maintained; both garages showed growth in gross revenue. /UMTA/

• Corporate Authors:

  Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission

  Bourse Building, 21 South 5th Street
  Philadelphia, PA  United States  19106
• Publication Date: 1974-9

Media Info

• Pagination: 40 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Central business districts; Costs; Off street parking; Parking; Parking demand; Public opinion; Rates; Turnover
• Subject Areas: Finance; Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Society;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00081011
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Urban Mass Transportation Administration
• Report/Paper Numbers: UMTA-DC-06-0062-74-1
• Files: TRIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Mar 26 1975 12:00AM