Parking lots weren’t exactly a symbol of eco-friendly living, since they signaled the tearing down of large green spaces to make room for smoke-belching vehicles. Today however, they’re getting quite an interesting makeover.
“Green” is the new black in planning, design and construction philosophy, and it’s no different for the parking industry. Parking designers are embracing practices such as using recycled materials, solar panels and energy-saving lighting and turning concrete rooftops into green surfaces to reduce storm-water runoff.
And apart from all the green features being installed in parking garages, parking garages today are being seen as way to actually encourage people to take public transportation. With their more strategic locations, people can simply drive to parking garages where they can leave their cars, hop on trains or buses in nearby stations, and be on their way to their destinations. It’s an interesting change, really, because without any other way of getting to transit stops, cities can’t hope to get more people interested in taking public transportation because there are no fast and easy ways to access them.
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