Optimizing the price of parking can have all sorts of positive benefits
Boxing Week is a cherished time in many Canadian households. All across the country, consumers work themselves into a frenzy over rock bottom prices – but what exactly do those prices mean? The Boxing Day sales tradition originated from retailers’ desire to get rid of leftover stock after the Christmas rush. Some may see those prices as an opportunity to get a cheap laptop, but economists see it as a piece of information. You can learn quite a bit about something from its price. Gasoline is a perfect example; its price fluctuates hourly based on supply, demand, competition, weather and a slew of other factors.
Parking is another example. In the right place at the right time, a spot can cost obscene amounts of money, simply because demand is so high. In other places, parking is free because its owners see it as way of drawing in customers. Parking in Downtown Guelph, Ontario for instance, has been free in two hour increments since 2007, and results have been positive in drawing customers away from suburban malls and back into the core. In Providence, Rhode Island, however, where the city is experimenting with all-day free parking, merchants are complaining that business is actually down because 9 to 5 employees are taking up all the spaces without leaving any for customers.
