Parking in Austria: Are the drastic price increases now?

Parking in Austria: Are the drastic price increases now?

Parking fees in Austria are currently the focus of numerous discussions. Many citizens find the current tariffs too high, while the Verkehrsclub Austria (VCÖ) represents an opposite opinion and consider the fees as too low. VCÖ expert Katharina Jaschinsky points out that other international cities are raising significantly higher parking fees and names Amsterdam, where the costs in the city center are 7.80 euros per hour-this corresponds to the triple price compared to Vienna. In Stuttgart, drivers pay 5.50 euros per hour in the city center, while the fees in Berlin vary between 4 euros in the center and at least 1 euros in marginal areas. Another interesting key figure comes from the German Landau, where residential parking cards for parking on the outskirts cost 180 euros a year, but up to 300 euros in central locations.

The international trends show an increasing differentiation of parking fees according to vehicle size and weight. In cities such as Koblenz and Aachen, the price is calculated based on the vehicle area. In Aachen, for example, a square meter costs 30 euros a year. Such a regulation is also available in Basel, with vehicles over 4.9 meters being added to CHF 492 per year. The increase in tariffs for heavy vehicles also implemented Paris, where the costs outside the parking zone rose to up to 18 euros per hour. In contrast, in most Austrian cities there is a lack of this differentiation, which leads to increased traffic volume and associated exhaust gas and noise loads in the inside of the city.

Planning for the reform of the parking tariffs in Vienna

in Vienna, the tariff zones for resident parking cards are partially oversized. The Vienna-Donaustadt district is 2.5 times as large as districts 1 to 9. These large areas of validity lead to more traffic within the district, which counteracts the urban objectives to reduce car traffic. The city of Vienna is planning to reduce the proportion of car trips in total traffic from 25 % to 15 % by 2030. The VCÖ therefore calls for a fair differentiation of the parking tariffs according to location and vehicle size and emphasizes that legal framework conditions have to be created in order to make parking fees sensible.

international parking fees in comparison

A look at some international cities shows the differences in the parking fees. San Francisco has the highest parking fees in the USA with an average of 8.49 euros per hour, while the fee in Los Angeles is 5.54 euros per hour. With a recent analysis of 355 parking spaces in San Francisco, it was found that the parking fees in this city can even be up to 42.17 euros per hour. Barcelona follows average parking costs of EUR 5.26 per hour, while London finished fifth with 3.21 euros with 3.21 euros.

New York is run as the most expensive city worldwide, where parking fees in the business district can even cost up to 27.43 euros per hour. This corresponds to 822 % above the median value in Sheffield. In Europe, the fees in Oslo are the highest at 7.92 euros per hour, while Amsterdam is also one of the most expensive cities with a price of 6.60 euros. The differentiation and structuring of the parking fees are used by many cities to control the flow of traffic and generate income. In London, for example, parking fees added to 830 million euros last year, which made around 518 million euros available for the municipal budget after deduction of costs.

The discussion about parking fees remains a decisive topic for urban planners and citizens in view of these international comparisons and local challenges in Austria.