The Hidden Time Tax of Parking Every Day

The Hidden Time Tax of Parking Every Day

You are ten minutes from a meeting and the third lap of the block has just started. Nobody sends you a bill for that lap, but you pay it anyway, in minutes, fuel and patience. That is the hidden time tax of parking, and for city drivers it adds up to days every year.

Quick Answer

• US drivers spend an average of 17 hours a year searching for parking, costing about US$345 each in wasted time, fuel and emissions (INRIX, 2017).
• In New York it is 107 hours and US$2,243 per driver a year. Los Angeles drivers lose 85 hours and San Francisco drivers 83.
• UK drivers average 44 hours and £733 a year. Londoners lose 67 hours and £1,104.
• 63% of the US drivers surveyed had avoided driving somewhere because parking was too hard to find.
• Fines, tows and clamps are not in those figures. They add hours of paperwork on top.

Every minute spent hunting for a space is a minute you do not get back. Photo: Pexels / Jay jay Redelinghuys

What the Time Tax Actually Costs

INRIX combined data from 100,000 parking locations in 8,700 cities with a survey of nearly 18,000 drivers in the US, UK and Germany. These are its figures per driver, per year:

107 hours is more than two and a half working weeks, spent looking at kerbs. The cost column counts only wasted time, fuel and emissions. A parking fine, a tow or a clamp release fee comes on top, and so does the time it takes to deal with each one.

Where the Minutes Go

• Circling. Street parking changes minute by minute, so drivers loop the same blocks hoping something opens up. Our look at how much time drivers waste looking for parking breaks the search down further.
• Reading signs. Stacked signs with time limits, permit zones, loading hours and clearways take time to decode, and a misread one turns a saved minute into a ticket.
• Dealing with the fallout. A fine means gathering evidence, writing an appeal and watching deadlines. A tow means finding the pound, the paperwork and the release fee. That is hours, not minutes.

Rushing makes it worse. A driver who is already late is more likely to take a spot that is unsafe, a long way from the destination, or not legal at all.

In the busiest cities, the parking search can take longer than the drive. Photo: Pexels / Max W

How to Cut Your Parking Time Tax

1. Search before you leave. Check parking near your destination on Parksy while you are still at home, so you drive to a space instead of hunting for one.
2. Go when the streets are quieter. Our guide to the best times to find parking in cities shows when spaces open up.
3. Check the sign before you walk away. Parksy's free AI Sign Scanner reads a photo of the sign and helps you work out whether you can park there, and for how long.
4. Appeal in minutes, not evenings. The free AI Appeal Writer drafts your parking fine appeal from your details and photos.
5. Have a plan for tows and clamps. Know what to do before it happens, so a bad day does not become a lost day. See help when you are towed or clamped.

Is Paying for Help Worth the Time?

Put a value on your time and the maths is short. In the US, Parksy VIP costs US$10 a month, so it pays for itself if it saves you about 25 minutes a month. That values your time at roughly US$24 an hour. A New York driver losing 107 hours a year is losing close to 9 hours every month.

VIP gives you a real person who helps when you are fined, towed, clamped or lost, from day one. It also adds entries in the weekly Fine & Tow Rescue Payout Draw, which start after a 30-day wait. Search, the Sign Scanner and the Appeal Writer stay free for everyone. See what VIP includes and the price in your currency.

Own a Space? Give Drivers Their Time Back

An empty driveway or garage is exactly what a circling driver is looking for. Listing it on Parksy is free, and drivers contact you directly. Evenings can pay well too: see our guide to night-time parking income.

Sources: INRIX, "Searching for Parking Costs Americans $73 Billion a Year" and "Parking Pain UK", July 2017.