Skip to main content

Drivers waste billions searching for parking

Drivers in the UK, US and Germany spend billions searching and paying for parking spaces and paying for more time than they need to avoid a penalty charge, according to a new study by Inrix.
July 13, 2017 Read time: 2 mins

Drivers in the UK, US and Germany spend billions searching and paying for parking spaces and paying for more time than they need to avoid a penalty charge, according to a new study by 163 Inrix.

The study was based on data from the Inrix Parking database of and survey responses from nearly 18,000 drivers in the US, UK and Germany.

The study found that UK drivers spend an average of 44 hours a year searching for parking, at a cost of £733 (US$948) each in wasted time, fuel and emissions. They overpay for parking to the tune of an estimated £6.7 billion (US$8.6 billion) a year or £209 (US$270) per driver; UK drivers also pay £1.2 billion (US$1.5 billion) annually in parking fines.

Americans spend an average of 17 hours per year searching for parking, resulting in a cost of US$345 per driver in wasted time, fuel and emissions, says the survey. Over-paying for parking costs American drivers more than US$20 billion a year, or US$97 per driver.

In Germany, motorists pay 98 Euros (US$112) more than needed for their parking, to avoid an average 8 Euros m (US$9) in parking fines. Germans waste an average 896 Euros (US$1,000) a year hunting for places, the study found.

Dr Graham Cookson, chief economist, Inrix, says, “To lessen the significant burden parking pain has on our economy and lives, smart parking solutions are available for drivers, parking operators and cities to help reduce search times, congestion and pollution as well as negate overpaying and fines altogether. Still, more needs to be done to drive adoption. Parking pain will only get worse until technology is fully embraced.”

Related Content

  • October 2, 2017
    Congestion to cost US drivers billions of dollars over the next decade
    Traffic hotspots in 25 of the most congested cities in the US cost drivers billions of dollars over the next ten years, according to a new report by Inrix’s cloud-based analysis tool. Inrix’s Roadway analytics (IRA) tool ranked over 100, 000 traffic hotspots with economic cost calculated on wasted time, lost fuel and carbon emissions over the next ten years.
  • November 7, 2013
    Smart Spanish city trials cell-based traffic management
    David Crawford reports on an urban electronic nervous system. The northern Spanish city of Santander – historically a port - is now an emerging technology showcase attracting global attention as a prototype for a medium-sized smart city of the future. In a move to determine the optimal use of available data, it is creating a de-facto experimental laboratory for sensor and mobile phone-based urban traffic management and environmental monitoring innovations.
  • June 19, 2019
    London EV demand ‘rising’ since ULEZ intro, says Carwow
    Demand for electric vehicles (EVs) has increased 123% in London since the introduction of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ), says Carwow. Using data from its website, the car-buying platform found that searches for EVs also increased 56% in the rest of the UK Enquiries for alternative fuel vehicles (AFV) increased 77% in the UK capital and 44% in the rest of the country. Carwow says there has been a 56% year on year increase in searches for hybrid vehicles since May 2018, with a further 92% incre
  • January 26, 2012
    Barcelona's bike share scheme a life saver
    A recent study of the health benefits of Barcelona's Bicing communal bike share scheme, reveals it is a life-saver, responsible for saving 12 lives a year. Barcelona's community bicycle programme, Bicing, was inaugurated in March 2007. One of several schemes operated in cities around the world by Clear Channel, it has fulfilled its role of providing an efficient, ecologically friendly and critically important form of transport, helping to increase urban mobility and reduce street congestion. Clear Channel h