The price elasticity of parking: A meta-analysis

The effect of parking fees on parking demand has been investigated in many different contexts, applying a wide variety of study designs. Research that brings together the knowledge derived in these studies systematically, however, is scarce. We conduct a meta-analysis of parking price elasticities based on 50 studies. Using seemingly unrelated regression models we account for the interdependence between the price elasticity of occupancy (EPO), dwell time (EPD), and volume (EPV). We show that estimates of parking elasticities based on stated preference (SP) data lead to different managerial and policy insights than estimates based on revealed preference (RP) data. Given a large amount of reported and unreported variation between the existing studies on parking price elasticities, we provide concrete recommendations for future studies that should warrant a higher degree of comparability and coherence in research design, conduction, and reporting.