Goyang City Opens 'Unused Parking Spaces' to Residents... Easing Parking Shortages

Goyang City Launches ‘Goyang-Style Shared Parking System’
Unused Parking Lots in Apartment Complexes and Schools to Be Opened to the Public

Goyang Special City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Min Kyungseon) is working to alleviate downtown parking shortages by opening up unused parking spaces in apartment complexes, schools, religious, and commercial facilities to local residents.

On August 7, Goyang City announced that it will implement the 'Goyang-Style Shared Parking System,' which involves sharing existing facility parking lots with area residents.

Panoramic view of Goyang City Hall. Courtesy of Goyang City

The 'Goyang-Style Shared Parking System' utilizes underused parking spaces in existing private and public facilities during low-demand hours, instead of building new parking lots. This approach takes into account the difficulty of securing new parking sites as well as the significant budget and time required for constructing public parking lots.

The city plans to identify shared parking lots, focusing primarily on areas with concentrated single-family and multi-family residences and commercial establishments with significant parking shortages.

For apartment complexes, parking spaces that are unused after residents leave for work on weekdays will be opened to nearby residents or office workers. Religious facilities will allow parking during times when there are no services or events. Schools will open their parking lots to residents during evenings, weekends, and holidays. Commercial facilities can also participate by sharing spaces outside of business hours or during periods of low parking demand.

In principle, eligible facilities must be able to open at least 10 parking spaces for a minimum of two years. Details regarding opening hours, users, and whether parking is free or paid will be determined through consultations between facility operators and management.

Starting this month, the city will accept applications from interested facilities and will select participating locations following on-site inspections, discussions of operational terms, and review by the Shared Parking Committee. If necessary, the city will also support facility improvements such as installing barriers, CCTV, lighting, signs, and parking demarcations after considering the project's effectiveness.

A Goyang City official stated, "The key is to make efficient use of already secured spaces instead of building new parking lots," and added, "We will actively identify facilities that can share parking spaces with the local community as long as it does not disrupt facility operations."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.