Poor HDB. According to them, they’re going to lose $100m a year if they don’t hike up parking fees. Thanks to this sob story, expect to pay 20% more for short-term parking starting in December.
Many commentators have long lamented the fact that despite the COE system, once you’ve forked out the cash to actually buy a car, you get to enjoy a road network that prioritises drivers rather than pedestrians, as well as affordable parking.
But how do parking fees in Singapore stack up compared to those in other developed cities?
We used Parkopedia, which compiles information on parking fees all over the world, to compare prices, and found that we actually pay pretty damn little in comparison with other expensive cities.
Singapore
From December, HDB and URA parking will cost $0.60 or $1.20 per half-hour, depending on the area you’re parking at. That means you pay between 1.20 SGD to 2.40 SGD per hour.
When it comes to private parking, you usually-though not always—end up paying more.
According to data found on One Motoring, hourly parking in the Orchard area is around $2 to $4 per hour. Per-entry parking is seldom more than $5.
Hong Kong
When it comes to cost of living and work-life balance issues, it’s safe to say that Hong Kong has it even worse than us.
Parking close to Central in Hong Kong costs about 21 HKD (3.67 SGD) to 34 HKD (5.95 SGD) per hour, and up to 142 HKD (7.34 SGD) per hour one weekends. You pay about 110 HKD (19.24 SGD) to 170 HKD (29.73 SGD) for half a day.
When it comes to owning your own parking space, it’s a whole other story, with Hong Kong parking spaces commanding some of the highest prices in the world.
Melbourne
Singaporeans who migrate to Australia are often bowled over by the low price of cars. There has to be a catch—is parking really that expensive? Actually, not really, so long as you stay out of the CBD
Parking meters in the CBD charge 5.50 AUD (5.51 SGD) per hour. For private parking, prices can be really mind boggling. You can easily end up paying over 20 AUD (20.33 SGD) an hour. If you park for several hours this goes down to a lower but still high price of 17 (17.28 SGD) to 19 AUD (19.31 SGD) an hour.
Outside the CBD area, you pay about 1.70 AUD (1.73 SGD) to 3.20 AUD (3.25 SGD), depending on how long you’re there. All day parking is only 0.80 AUD (0.81 SGD) per hour.
This applies to street parking very close to but not exactly in the CBD, like nearby Lygon Street or next to Queen Victoria Market. So most people just park on the outskirts of the CBD and then walk in.
New York
The Big Apple is notorious for being expensive, and parking charges there are some of the highest in the world.
In downtown Manhattan, short-term parking of one to two hours tends to be very expensive, at anywhere between 20 USD (27.13 SGD) to 40 USD (54.27 SGD) (!) an hour.
The longer you park, the cheaper the hourly rate gets, with most carparks offering daily parking at about 50 USD (67.86 SGD).
London
London is yet another city notorious for its high prices. But come on, nobody really drives in the city centre, since there are zillions of Tube stations, all within what seems like 30 seconds’ walk of each other.
Parking in central London generally costs about 4 GBP (7.16 SGD) to 6.50 GBP (11.65 SGD) per hour, with 24 hour parking costing about 30 GBP (53.70 SGD) to 40 GBP (71.61 SGD).
Bangkok
You’re more likely to cruise around Bangkok in a tuktuk or on a scooter, but that’s beside the point.
Virtually everything in Bangkok is cheaper than its equivalent in Singapore, and parking is no different. Parking tends to range from 13 THB (0.50 SGD) to 40 THB (1.55 SGD) per hour.
San Francisco
Private or metered parking in the downtown area ranges from about 2 USD (2.72 SGD) to 6 USD (8.15 SGD) per hour, although some meters charge as little as 0.25 USD (0.34 SGD) per hour at certain times of day (no prizes for guessing what sorts of hours those are).
If you’re looking for somewhere to park for an entire day, you’re looking at paying about 20 USD (27.15 SGD) to 30 USD (40.73 SGD).
Paris
Other than the fact that Parisian drivers aren’t exactly known for their courtesy (but hey, if you drive in Singapore this should be nothing new), parking within the city centre is also notoriously expensive.
You’re looking at paying about 5 euro (7.46 SGD) to 8 euro (11.94 SGD) an hour, while 24 hour parking will cost about 35 (52.23 SGD) to 50 euro (74.63 SGD). Let’s see if you still have the heart to buy that Chanel in Paris after paying such hefty parking charges.
If you drive, how much do you spend on parking per month? Tell us in the comments!
Image Credits:
Kee Wee Wong