Searching for on-street parking: An empirical investigation of the factors influencing cruise time

Abstract

This study provides empirical evidence and analyses of cruising time for parking in a dense urban area. A survey was conducted across three distinct geographical areas in the central business district (CBD) of Brisbane, Australia, over one week to assess the effect of parking and driving habits on search time for parking. Drivers’ parking behavior was observed and responses to a questionnaire were obtained from 138 drivers. Several large transactional datasets were also used to complement the survey data and evaluate the impact of parking supply/demand and traffic volume on cruise time. Overall, 25% of the participants did not cruise for parking, 40% spent less than five min, and 35% spent more than five min to find parking. Our results revealed that arrival time is a significant determinant of cruising behavior. Approximately 80% of the drivers who parked every day in the CBD found parking in less than three min, while almost 50% of those who parked occasionally in the CBD had to search for parking more than five min. The trip purpose also impacted cruise time for parking; drivers who traveled for work or business were more likely to cruise for parking compared to all other trip purposes. One surprising finding of this study is the negative association between relative traffic volume and cruising time; drivers who tended to search for on-street parking in the Brisbane CBD were more likely to avoid peak traffic. Our findings, in general, highlight the need to provide real-time and reliable parking information to regular commuters to minimize their total travel time and to reduce congestion in the CBD. Provision of a parking information system can mitigate cruising for on-street parking in the CBD, especially if it considers the prices of both on-street and off-street parking facilities and enables customized comparisons between them.