"4 Reasons Retailers Don't Need Free Parking to Thrive."

Okay, I won't pretend that studies conducted in European cities are an exact fit with our everyday experiences here in the land of the ubiquitous auto, but still there are nuggets here worth chewing, as in point number four: "A mix of retailers is more important than parking supply."

4 Reasons Retailers Don't Need Free Parking to Thrive, by Eric Jaffe (The Atlantic Cities)

A major rationale for the supply of parking spaces in city shopping centers is that customers won't come without them. The anecdotal argument makes sense — retailers believe that most consumers arrive by car and believe free or cheap parking plays a major role in choosing a destination — but the actual evidence is scant at best. A new review of commercial centers in Greater London, released late last month (via David King), concludes that retailers vastly overestimate the role free parking plays in their success.