--- title: "Parking-lane reallocation" url: "https://commonwaysystem.org/retrofits/corridor/parking-lane-reallocation/" id: "RFT-CDR-05" description: "Converts an existing on-street parking lane to another use: a bike lane, a transit lane, a parklet, or public plaza space." updated: "2026-10-18" --- RFT-CDR-05 # Parking-lane reallocation Converts an existing on-street parking lane to another use: a bike lane, a transit lane, a parklet, or public plaza space. ## Strategy viewer Illustration in progress No illustration of Parking-lane reallocation has been made yet. Interactive views are planned for every pattern and Retrofit Strategy. ## Overview A parking lane is curb space, not travel-lane space, so reallocating it changes the curb's function rather than the roadway's through capacity. This makes it a distinct retrofit strategy from a road diet or lane diet, even though it's often executed alongside one. Common outcomes include a painted or protected bike lane, a peak-hour or full-time bus lane, or a parklet occupying what was previously one or two parking spaces. ## Related Media The items below come from outside the Commonway System, external videos, podcasts, and articles related to this page's topic, not part of the guidebook itself. 8 items - Aligned ### [Why Amsterdam is Removing 10,000 Parking Spaces](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXLqrMljdfU) Not Just Bikes Documents Amsterdam's on-street parking reduction through permit attrition and street redesigns, including the tradeoff of a large replacement garage inducing more driving nearby. MED-009 - Aligned ### [The Problem with Vancouver's Boundary Rd BRT (w/ @MovementYVR)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2TuO_f38FM) RMTransit The video examines TransLink's Boundary Road BRT planning and warns against a watered-down "BRT-lite" that sacrifices route quality. It connects directly to the Commonway System's transit priority and arterial transit guidance, including the tradeoff between parking lanes and transit lanes. MED-027 - Aligned ### [Why protected bike lanes are more valuable than parking spaces](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E85HMNJix_o) Vox The video uses New York's 9th Avenue parking-protected bike lane to show that trading parking for protected cycling improves safety and even retail sales. It is evidence for the Commonway System's parking-lane reallocation retrofit strategy. MED-039 - Aligned ### [How Expanding Bike Lanes Can Actually Decrease Traffic - Cheddar Explains](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XN-tSpQZmYk) Cheddar The video cites New York DOT data showing protected bike lanes cut injuries while holding vehicle travel times steady. It supplies the measured results behind the Commonway System's protected bike lane guidance. MED-043 - Aligned ### [How Carson City's Main Stroad Became a Street](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMiB9Men2TY) Yet Another Urbanist The video documents Carson Street's conversion from a four-lane stroad to a two-lane street with wide sidewalks and a plaza, including the traffic studies and parking reclamation behind it. It is a full real-world walkthrough of the Commonway System's stroad pattern and road diet retrofits. MED-045 - Aligned ### [Why Parking Minimums Almost Destroyed My Hometown and How We Repealed Them](https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2017-11-22-how-parking-minimums-almost-destroyed-my-hometown-and-how-we-repealed-them) Strong Towns A Sandpoint, Idaho council member tells how parking minimums nearly forced a bank to demolish local businesses for 200 mandated spaces, and how repealing them downtown brought quick business growth. It is a first-person case study for the Commonway System's parking reform and density guidance. MED-046 - Aligned ### [Ep 1: Stacy Thompson - Tactical Transit in Boston](https://high-frequency.simplecast.com/episodes/tactical-transit-in-boston-v2LQFsUn) High Frequency The episode describes Boston's 2017 pop-up bus lanes, which made trips about 25 percent faster with 94 percent rider approval. It is a real-world demo of the Commonway System's transit priority lane retrofit, including converting parking lanes to bus lanes. MED-059 - Aligned ### [Parking Reform with Tony Jordan (Ep 558)](https://streetsblog.libsyn.com/episode-558-parking-reform-with-tony-jordan) Talking Headways Tony Jordan of the Parking Reform Network makes the case against arbitrary parking requirements and for their abolition. It is an interview-length companion to the Commonway System's parking reform guidance. MED-064 [See all 8 in the Media Gallery](https://commonwaysystem.org/media/?for=RFT-CDR-05) ## Where this leads: Target patterns - [Bicycle Boulevard / Neighborhood Greenway](https://commonwaysystem.org/patterns/local-streets/bicycle-boulevard.md) (LOC-BBG-12) - [Local Transit](https://commonwaysystem.org/patterns/local-streets/local-transit.md) (LOC-LTR-10) - [Collector Transit](https://commonwaysystem.org/patterns/collectors/collector-transit.md) (COL-CTR-05) ## Applicability and thresholds Applicable wherever on-street parking exists and demand analysis shows the parking is underutilized relative to the corridor's other needs, or where the reallocated use (transit, bikes, public space) is judged a higher priority than parking supply at that location. ## Evidence and effectiveness AASHTO identifies reconfiguring or reducing on-street parking as one of three established approaches to retrofitting bicycle facilities without widening the road, alongside reallocating travel-lane width and reducing the number of travel lanes.[1] ## Getting it built Well suited to the early stages of the construction spectrum. A parklet or bike lane conversion is a common demonstration- or pilot-stage project, using paint, planters, and removable barriers before any permanent construction. See [Construction Methodology & The Build Spectrum](https://commonwaysystem.org/guide/construction-methodology-spectrum.md). No formal decision process is typically required, though negotiation with affected business owners and residents is common practice, per FHWA guidance on parking removal. ## Who can move this Usually a city public works or planning department decision, sometimes requiring business improvement district or city council coordination where displaced parking affects adjacent businesses. See [Legal & Planning Mechanisms](https://commonwaysystem.org/guide/legal-planning-mechanisms.md). ## Related retrofit strategies - [Protected bike lane retrofit via parking reduction](https://commonwaysystem.org/retrofits/corridor/protected-bike-lane-parking-reduction.md) (RFT-CDR-09) (a specific application of this strategy aimed at bike facilities) ## References 1. Evidence-based [Federal Highway Administration University Course on Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation Design, module on street reconfiguration and parking removal.](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/research/safety/pedbike/05085/chapt15.cfm) 2. Precedent-based [PPS, "A Glossary of Road Diet Strategies," on converting parking lanes to plazas and parklets.](https://www.pps.org/article/a-glossary-of-road-diet-strategies)