Back in the early 2010s, the program of intercepting parking lots was approved in Kyiv – it was planned that a whole network of almost 30 parking lots located on the relative outskirts of the city near the metro or interchanges would cover the capital. After 10 years, we have 6 intercepting parking lots for 649 seats. Sounds like a network? Not very, especially when you consider that the parking of the average large shopping center is designed for about 1000 places.
What does the mall have to do with it? The very first city program provided that intercepting parking lots would be located not only on communal land, but also on the territory of private development projects.
At that time, we were just developing a project next to one of these locations, so such a cooperation program was very interesting. Our business model assumed that the parking will be used in four formats at once: daytime for visitors to the mall, nighttime and around the clock for “regular customers” and standard intercepting.
What format of cooperation was possible?
1. Share investments and profits with the city.
2. Build everything “for your own”, and for the part of the parking – operating and the subsequent profit to give completely to the city, in return – “buns” in the form of networks, transport interchanges, reduction of share participation, etc.
Given that as many as 6 intercepting parking lots are operating in Kyiv today, it is obvious that things have not moved beyond conversations and memoranda. It would seem that the European experience when a person leaves a car at an intercepting parking lot and then transfers to public transport is very correct and convenient. But Ukraine has its own realities and a vicious circle – there is no adequate public transport, which means people will continue to use their cars, there are no intercepting parking lots – you have to go through the whole city. Despite the fact that there are a lot of people who want to use the intercepting parking format.
At the same time, in the very center, perhaps the most sad situation and even the growing number of tow trucks and fines are not able to influence the situation. In Ukraine, there is a company that produces mechanized parking – those that are similar to the constructor lego, occupying a minimum of space, but capable of unloading the city. Have you seen at least one such utility? Of course not. Capital land is too expensive for such delights, and officials are too intractable.
How to park at home?
Last year, our analysts conducted a study of how metropolitan LCDs are provided with parking spaces. On average throughout Kyiv, the provision of parking spaces was 0.59, that is, for every two apartments there is one parking space. These figures reflect the specifics of only those complexes that indicated parking data, and this is slightly less than 170, so the actual coverage of parking spaces can be estimated at no more than 0.35, or even 0.3 parking spaces per apartment.
A developer who cares about the comfort of his customers always builds a parking lot – but not always in the first place, but after a critical mass of residents have been settled and the project has reached the final stage of implementation. I emphasize: it takes care of the residents, and does not earn on them. Because, if it’s not a parking place in the center, it is actually sold at cost. And while the residents themselves are not ready to pay for their comfort, developers will not and will not be able to provide more parking lots.
What does not lose its popularity is flat parking lots, especially in residential microdistricts – firstly, they are quite inexpensive, and secondly, local “gangsters” encourage residents not to keep their cars on the street.
Why nobody needs parking in Kyiv
The number of abandoned cars on the edge makes it clear that Ukrainians do not want to pay either 30, 20, or even 10 UAH per hour for parking. Particularly arrogant continue to do this, even after meeting with a tow truck and a rather complicated procedure for returning a car. “I have parked and will park” is their motto. Accordingly, paid parking is idle. So why, tell me, should an investor invest their money in them? After all, he is an investor, not a philanthropist.
It seems that the city authorities are considering only a model according to which the investor will independently build a parking lot and earn money on it. But I do not know such investors who want to bury millions of dollars in order to later earn 30 UAH per hour at best.
If the city still expects that a private investor will come to this niche, then it should attract it with benefits: help with summing up networks, targeted loans, raising fines for improper parking, etc.
So far, daredevils are not observed, but I believe that such projects are possible and in the near future we will find investors who can build on this a systematic business with the prospect of funding.
All of Europe parks in car parks or parking lots – and no matter how ancient, architecturally valuable, large or small the city is. For them, this is the norm. Yes, the cost of such construction costs crazy money, but they understand that the city is for people, not for cars, and you need to walk along the sidewalks, and not with difficulty walking around parked cars.
Andriy Ryzhykov, CEO and managing partner of the development company DC Evolution