Parking Spaces in the Age of Shared Autonomous Vehicles: How Much Parking Will We Need and Where?

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Parking Spaces in the Age of Shared Autonomous Vehicles: How Much Parking Will We Need and Where?

Zhang, Wenwen / Guhathakurta, Subhrajit

The world is on the cusp of a new era in mobility given that the enabling technologies for autonomous vehicles (AVs) are almost ready for deployment and testing. Although the technological frontiers for deploying AVs are being crossed, transportation planners and engineers know far less about the potential impact of such technologies on urban form and land use patterns. This paper attempts to address those issues by simulating the operation of shared AVs (SAVs) in the city of Atlanta, Georgia, by using the real transportation network with calibrated link-level travel speeds and a travel demand origin–destination matrix. The model results suggest that the SAV system can reduce parking land by 4.5% in Atlanta at a 5% market penetration level. In charged-parking scenarios, parking demand will move from downtown to adjacent low-income neighborhoods. The results also reveal that policy makers may consider combining charged-parking policies with additional regulations to curb excessive vehicle miles traveled and alleviate potential social equity problems.