Impacts of parking and accessibility on retail-oriented city centres

Abstract

Growing e-commerce, the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for greater sustainability, and increasing competition between different uses for scarce space pose increasing challenges to city centres. Most city centres in high-income countries are strongly characterized by retail. To create space for other mobility modes, outdoor dining, or greening, reducing on-street parking is a controversially discussed measure that is feared especially by retailers. However, the impact of parking infrastructure and accessibility on the performance of retail in city centres is not yet clearly explored in the literature. This paper contributes to closing this research gap by analysing the impact of on- and off-street parking capacity and accessibility on the rents for retail properties in city centres. The applied database consists of nearly 400 retail rental offers in the city centre of Aachen, Germany, published between 2015 and 2022. As the data cover the period of the COVID-19 pandemic, we also consider the impact of the pandemic on retail rents. Results of a spatial regression indicate that public transport stops, pedestrian zones, and public parking garages nearby increase the attractiveness of retail locations. On the contrary, much on-street parking capacity in the immediate vicinity reduces retail rents. However, sufficient parking capacity should be accessible within a comfortable walking distance. This finding supports the approach of reducing on-street parking in city centres while concentrating stationary car traffic in multi-storey car parks.