Edinburgh Napier University

  Parking plays an important role in mobility, access and the economic development of
cities; at the same time, it is a profitable business for both the private and public
sectors. The city centre car parking market is a sector of the economy that has
increased in importance as the market for cars has grown. Cars have become a
fundamental element of journey mobility and, in consequence, parking has as well.
The car-parking sector has always been of great importance in terms of urban
mobility, since it is a fundamental element in achieving a high level of accessibility in
the city centres. In fact, many businesses and municipalities see an adequate supply
of parking, especially for visitors, as crucial for their competitive growth. Yet, at the
same time parking is, and will remain for most cities, the most powerful means of
traffic restraint available. The economics of car parking is also important because it
is, both for public and private organizations, a key source of revenue.

Despite the importance of the sector, knowledge of the car parking market has been
until very recently, sparse and limited. This thesis is focused on the car parking
operator’s point of view, analysing and appraising this industry and the actors
involved. The related literature investigates the car parking sector analysing the
variables that influence its behaviour. The literature review also appraises whether
and how far car parking operators are considered as key transport actors by local and
national authorities, comparing Italy and the UK. The information collected is used to
structure an econometric model, using the variables chosen as important and
simulating the strategic behaviour of the car parking operator in a city centre context.
The research also deepens the analysis of the car parking sector with a survey of car
parking operators and policies in some Italian and UK cities. In this way the research
achieves its aims to contribute to filling the knowledge gap on the city centre car
parking market, both theoretically and empirically. Theoretically because the
literature on car parking is very recent and little investigated; empirically, because
research in this field is also sparse.