Parking availability influences on travel mode: Melbourne CBD offices: Fid-Bau Portal

Parking availability influences on travel mode: Melbourne CBD offices

Pandhe, Amruta / March, Alan

In Melbourne, Australia, there is currently interest in charging a levy on parking to reduce congestion and to encourage use of sustainable transport alternatives. This research aims to examine employees’ perceptions of their modal choice during journey to work, and considers the role of parking availability in modal choice, including whether people can be shifted to public transport. To investigate this, a survey was conducted in the CBD region of Melbourne consisting of 72 car and 91 public transport travellers. Fifty-three percent of car users said that they would not use cars if there were no parking, with 35% responding that they would shift to trains. The analysis suggests there is a link between reducing parking supply per employee, and promotion of sustainable travel modes. The results suggest a lack of understanding by policy makers about the wider effects of parking, with parking actions commonly contradicting achievement of wider transport and planning objectives for Melbourne. Furthermore, the analysis indicates that saving travel time, environmental issues and demographic changes all played a part in individual decisions to reduce car usage.