The Push for Parking Reform

Recent legislative efforts in Washington, Connecticut, Colorado, Minnesota, and Montana highlight a growing movement to reduce or eliminate parking requirements. While each state's approach varies, the common theme is clear: outdated parking mandates are increasingly an obstacle to housing affordability and sustainable development. This momentum builds on the leadership of local communities — 83 cities and three counties across the country have already adopted substantial reforms, leading the way for states that aim to boost housing supply through reform.

Communities are finding that minimum parking requirements can artificially inflate housing costs, contribute to sprawl, and prioritize car-centric infrastructure at the expense of walkability and public transit investment. To address these challenges, planners are working to right-size reforms to increase the amount of land available to build housing, lower housing costs, strengthen local economies, and allow for more varied housing types. Parking reform has also frequently been embedded in both state and local accessory dwelling unit (ADU) policies, which have become increasingly popular as a tool to expand missing middle housing options.

One Size Can't Fit All: Colorado Leads the Way on Parking Reform

As far back as 2005, when planning pioneer Donald Shoup brought parking reform to the forefront of mainstream conversation with his book, The High Cost of Free Parking, planners have been experimenting with new ways to reduce, reform, or eliminate parking mandates to reshape the way residents live and travel throughout their communities. More recently, parking has once again made headlines with books like Abundance and Paved Paradise: How Parking Explains the World, and states are getting in on the action.

After several years of effort, Colorado passed an innovative parking reform bill in August 2024. In recognition that rigid, one-size-fits-all parking mandates often fail to meet local needs, this bill eliminates minimum parking requirements for certain residential and mixed-use developments within designated transit service areas inside metropolitan areas. While providing specific targets, the state-level policy remains flexible with its requirements to allow localities some flexibility in determining and implementing which reforms work best for their communities' unique needs and opportunities.

A Sweeping Trend: Ongoing Efforts to Reduce Parking Mandates

With the success of Colorado's legislation, more states are looking to leverage parking reforms that create more housing opportunities while also encouraging a wider range of transportation choices.

Washington

In Washington state, a Senate bill sponsored by Senator Jessica Bateman, who has been a champion for housing abundance issues, represents one of the most sweeping parking reforms in the country. The bill, which has passed both chambers, prohibits cities from requiring developers to include parking spaces for housing units located near transit corridors, unless they can demonstrate a clear need for additional parking. This policy shift acknowledges that reducing parking mandates is an impactful way to support more housing development, faster.

Connecticut

Connecticut has also taken steps to reform parking requirements as part of broader efforts to unlock housing affordability. One bill has the potential to make Connecticut the first state to introduce a bill to eliminate parking minimums statewide. By reducing unnecessary parking, Connecticut aims to make housing development more financially feasible and encourage transit-oriented growth.

Minnesota

Minnesota has joined this movement with a bill that seeks to prohibit local governments from imposing minimum parking mandates. If enacted, it would prevent cities from requiring a set number of off-street parking spaces, except for necessary ADA-compliant disability parking.

The bill would still allow local governments to offer nonbinding parking recommendations and regulate disability parking, aligning Minnesota with the broader national trend of reducing parking requirements to encourage adaptable community planning.

Montana

A parking bill in Montana, which has passed both chambers of the state legislature and is awaiting approval from Governor Greg Gianforte, would prohibit local governments from establishing or enforcing minimum parking requirements for residential and commercial developments, except in limited cases such as ADA compliance or safety-related concerns.

By curbing rigid parking mandates, the bill aims to lower barriers to new development and give property owners greater flexibility, particularly in urban areas where excessive parking requirements can hinder density and walkability.

The bill is part of a second wave of pro-housing legislation in the state. Together, these bills can enact major statewide parking reforms, expand legalization for apartments in commercial zones and for single-stairs, and build on the monumental success of the 'Montana Miracle'.

Housing Supply Accelerator Playbook

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Reducing parking requirements is one local reform strategy identified in the Housing Supply Accelerator Playbook that can lower housing costs, speed development, and increase supply.

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What Comes Next?

These states are at the forefront of a broader shift in how states regulate parking. As more states recognize the impact of reforming outdated parking requirements, expect more to soon follow suit. In the meantime, planners can still drive action at the local level, where parking reforms continue to see success in increasing housing supply.

Explore more Resources on parking reform

A Business Case for Dropping Parking Minimums

Three Zoning Reform Success Stories that Reignited Downtown Development

Five Essential Tips for Repealing Parking Minimums

How the Bipartisan 'Montana Miracle' Confronts the Housing Crisis Head On

ADU Research Knowledgebase Collection

Housing Supply Accelerator Playbook

Top image: iStock / Getty Images Plus - Thomas DeWever