A session at TransAction this week, entitled "The Paved Paradise: Commuter Parking Lots," explained New Jersey’s commitment to building new train station parking, and raised questions as to whether state funded development priorities are really promoting smart growth.

In 2000, NDOT was mandated by the Transportation Trust Fund to build or expand at least two park- and-ride facilities in each of the next five years. Over the first three years of the mandate, NJDOT has exceeded these goals, even while ignoring concurrent mandates to step up work on bridge maintenance and bikeway projects. It has also been seeking ways of better coordinating administrative and real estate issues that impede acquiring and/or building new parking lots. More recently, in November 2002, Governor McGreevey stated that, as part of his smart growth agenda, NJ would build 20,000 parking spaces in the next five years at train and bus stations (at a cost of $13 million this year alone).

While the stated goal of park-and-rides — to get people out of their cars and onto mass transit — may seem worthy, some at the session questioned whether the new parking facilities would accomplish this. If it encourages more local driving, it will worsen congestion and pollution in the host community. Only about half of NJ train riders drive their own cars to get to train stations, and more than 70% of bus riders walk to their stops. More parking is likely to increase driving to transit centers.

Park-and-rides may be the only option in outlying areas. However, current priorities for new parking are along the Montclair branch, at the Secaucus transfer, and along the light rail lines. The smart growth and transit challenges in these areas ought to be to bring feeder transit service and higher-value development to the station areas.

Unfortunately, only a few speakers at TransAction made the point that NJ cannot pave its way to smart growth. NJDOT officials said they were looking at other transit access options, including bikeways, community shuttles, and increased bus service, but parking is clearly a runaway first on the list.

Some NJ towns have the right idea. Rahway and Montclair State University are looking to build multi-level garages in place of spacious service lots, a step in the right direction. Maplewood and Glen Ridge have jitney services between neighborhoods and stations. Others, like South Orange, are looking to develop affordable housing and reduce parking requirements near train stations. Yet many NJ towns, even ones with the state’s "transit village" designation, are increasing parking supply in downtowns and adjacent to stations. Ideally, transit villages would reduce downtown parking, and provide structured parking a few blocks from stations, reserving the immediate station area for high-value, pedestrian-friendly development.

If you build it, they will come. The question is whether attracting more traffic with park-and-rides is really helping NJ toward smart growth.

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