Parking Policy | “Guiding Opinions on Strengthening the Development of Urban Parking Facilities”

Guiding Opinions on Strengthening the Development of Urban Parking Facilities

(NDRC Basic [2015] No. 1788)

To the Development and Reform Commissions, Finance Departments, Departments of Land and Resources, Departments (Commissions) of Housing and Urban–Rural Development, Planning Commissions (Bureaus), Departments (Commissions) of Transport, and Public Security Departments (Bureaus) of all provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the central government, cities separately listed for planning purposes, and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps:

With the rapid advancement of urbanization and the continuous improvement in residents’ living standards, the number of passenger cars in cities has risen sharply. Consequently, the shortage of parking facilities has become increasingly pronounced, encroaching on public resources such as non-motorized vehicle lanes, impeding traffic flow, and constraining efforts to further enhance urban quality and elevate the level of management services. Attracting private capital and promoting the industrialization of the parking sector are crucial strategies for addressing the challenge of urban parking shortages, as well as key measures for advancing reform and innovation and ensuring stable economic growth. To this end, these Guiding Opinions have been formulated.

I. Overall Approach

Grounded in the city’s transportation development strategy, this approach integrates dynamic and static traffic management, balancing immediate needs with long-term benefits. It positions parking management as a key tool for demand‑side transport management, moderately meeting the basic parking requirements of residential areas while strictly controlling on‑street parking for trips. Guided by the goal of industrializing the parking sector, it calls for intensified reforms and policy innovation across urban planning, land allocation, financial services, pricing, and operational management, thereby fostering a robust market‑oriented environment, mobilizing private capital, accelerating the expansion of parking infrastructure, effectively addressing the shortage of parking supply, strengthening operational oversight, ensuring orderly and standardized parking practices, and enhancing the urban environment.

II. Basic Principles

Adhere to market‑driven operations: guided by government planning and supported by relevant policies, and in line with market‑oriented management principles, accelerate the industrialization of parking services with enterprises as the main actors. Uphold reform and innovation, refine management systems and mechanisms, explore diverse cooperation models, and effectively attract social capital. Pursue intensive utilization and potential tapping, encourage the open sharing of existing parking resources, make efficient use of and fully tap urban above‑ground and underground space, and develop multi‑level parking facilities. Ensure simultaneous development and management: improve on‑street parking space management, enhance the level of parking informationization, and strengthen enforcement against illegal activities.

III. Scientifically Formulate the Plan

Based on the urban master plan and the comprehensive transportation system plan, local authorities adopt a differentiated parking supply strategy—prioritizing on-site parking, supplementing it with off-street public parking, and providing on-street parking as a last resort. They revise the standards for on-site parking spaces in urban buildings, develop dedicated parking facility plans, and promptly integrate these into the city’s detailed land-use control plans to ensure effective land-use management. The planning process must comprehensively consider the locational characteristics of urban functional zones, land-use attributes, and the development of public transportation, accurately estimate parking demand, set clear phased adaptation targets, optimize facility placement, formulate short-term implementation plans, establish a project pipeline, and make relevant information publicly available in a timely manner.

IV. Clarify Key Areas of Development

Focusing on key areas such as residential neighborhoods, major integrated transportation hubs, peripheral park-and-ride (P+R) stations of urban rail transit, hospitals, schools, and tourist attractions, we will expand parking capacity through internal optimization and renovation, while also developing additional public parking facilities in adjacent areas where conditions permit. We encourage the construction of compact, high‑density parking facilities—such as parking garages, underground parking lots, and automated multi‑level parking structures—and require that electric vehicle charging infrastructure be provided at a specified ratio, to be built concurrently with the main project.

V. Encouraging Social Participation

Through various mechanisms, we will broadly attract social capital to invest in the development of urban parking facilities and vigorously promote the public–private partnership (PPP) model. We will encourage enterprises, institutions, residential communities, and individuals to utilize their own land and above- and below‑ground spaces to build parking facilities, allowing them to open these facilities to the public and generate corresponding revenues.

VI. Relaxing Market Access Restrictions

Relevant authorities across regions are refining market access regulations and lowering the entry thresholds for entities involved in the construction and operation of parking facilities, as well as for investment scales. Both enterprises and individuals may apply to invest in and build public parking lots, with no minimum requirement on the number of parking spaces, in principle. The investment, construction, and operational management models for parking facilities are being reformed to remove existing barriers to social participation.

VII. Streamlining Approval Procedures

Relevant departments in all cities shall deepen reforms of the administrative approval system, streamline administration and delegate power, transform their functions, and proactively provide services. They should simplify procedures for investment, construction, and business operations, enhance work efficiency, and, in accordance with prescribed time limits and procedures, complete the approval (or ratification) of parking facility construction projects submitted by project owners or investors. For small‑scale parking facilities or those built on self‑owned land, a filing‑based management approach is encouraged. Local authorities are to maximize reductions or exemptions from administrative and public‑service fees incurred during the construction and operation of parking facilities.

VIII. Strengthening the Guarantee of Public Land Use

Local authorities shall ensure adequate land availability; a designated proportion of land released through the relocation of functions in central urban areas and other similar measures should be earmarked for parking facility development. Where the land meets the criteria set forth in the Catalogue of Allocated Land, it may be allocated without charge. If the land does not fall within the Catalogue and there is only one prospective user for a given parcel, it may be transferred through negotiated land‑use rights transfer.

IX. Revitalizing Existing Land Resources

For enterprises, public institutions, residential communities, and individuals that utilize their own allocated land to construct parking facilities, the planning authorities shall give full consideration to the rationality of parking demand and process the necessary planning adjustments regarding land use designation and floor area ratio. The development of parking facilities in above‑ground and underground spaces of public amenities, civil defense structures, and other underground areas is encouraged to enhance the multifunctional utilization of land. Relevant departments shall handle planning and land‑use procedures in a tiered manner, and the investing and constructing entities shall obtain ownership of the parking facilities in accordance with applicable regulations.

X. Innovative Investment and Financing Models

Public resources may be leveraged to develop parking facilities, with encouragement for the adoption of a public–private partnership (PPP) model. Under this model, the government contributes ownership rights to public resources, and private capital jointly undertakes development and construction, while mechanisms such as waiving revenue rights for a specified period are employed to safeguard private investors’ returns. Furthermore, provided that the land use and the holder of the land-use right remain unchanged, a portion of the building area may be designated for community‑oriented commercial services, with the resulting revenues used to help cover shortfalls in the funding required for the construction and operation of parking facilities.

XI. Strengthen Financial Support

Accelerate efforts to encourage investors to issue special-purpose bonds for parking‑lot construction; study the establishment of a dedicated industrial investment fund to guide the development of parking infrastructure; and fully leverage the role of development finance by encouraging financial institutions and leasing companies to innovate financial products and financing models to provide support.

XII. Improving Parking Fee Policies

Fully leverage the price‑based incentive mechanism, gradually narrow the scope of government‑set pricing, and comprehensively lift price controls on parking facilities newly constructed with wholly private capital. For parking facilities developed through public‑private partnerships, take into account fiscal subsidies, societal affordability, and other relevant factors, adhere to market principles and the principle of reasonable profitability, and allow investors to determine fee structures in accordance with mutually agreed terms. As for parking facilities subject to government pricing—such as on‑street parking—refine the rules governing government‑set pricing and implement differentiated pricing based on location, facility characteristics, and other pertinent criteria.

Thirteen: Enhancing the Level of Equipment Manufacturing

Support domestic parking equipment manufacturers in pursuing independent innovation, encourage industry consortia and other collaborative models to advance technological R&D, and gradually raise the level of domestic content for core equipment. Include the parking industry in the list of high-end manufacturing sectors, extend relevant policy incentives, and foster homegrown equipment brands. Integrate product quality and after-sales service performance of parking equipment manufacturers into the corporate integrity system, promptly recording any misconduct. Actively guide domestically branded enterprises to expand internationally, thereby facilitating the export of competitive production capacity in the parking sector.

XIV. Promoting Intelligent and Information-Based Parking Management

Localities are accelerating surveys to assess urban parking resources, establishing foundational parking databases that are updated in real time and made publicly accessible for sharing; promoting the development and deployment of advanced technologies such as metered‑parking systems, intelligent parking guidance systems, and automatic license‑plate recognition systems; strengthening interconnectivity and information sharing among disparate parking‑management information systems; fostering the integrated development of parking and the Internet; supporting the development and widespread adoption of mobile‑app‑based online parking services; encouraging users to check available spaces and reserve spots prior to travel; enabling automated billing and payment; and thereby enhancing the efficiency of parking resource utilization while reducing traffic demand generated by the search for parking.

XV. Strengthen Comprehensive Parking Management

Localities are simultaneously upgrading municipal public facilities and parking guidance systems around parking lots; upon the completion and commissioning of newly built or expanded public parking facilities, on-street parking spaces in the surrounding areas will be reduced and gradually phased out, while enforcement against illegal parking will be strengthened to ensure effective demand for public parking and enhance revenue levels. Public‑sector parking resources, including on‑street parking, will be managed through transparent, publicly tendered contracts, with a designated portion of revenues earmarked specifically for parking‑lot development. Parking services and pricing practices will be subject to rigorous oversight, and unauthorized operations, arbitrary land‑enclosure and charging, and other violations will be firmly cracked down upon.

XVI. Strengthening Organizational Support

The people’s governments of cities are the principal entities responsible for the planning, construction, operation, and management of parking facilities. They must attach great importance to this task, encourage the establishment of dedicated parking management agencies, clearly define the division of responsibilities among relevant departments, and ensure effective implementation. Relevant ministries and commissions under the State Council, in light of their respective mandates, should formulate and introduce corresponding support policies, strengthen inter‑agency coordination, and work together to advance the development and management of parking infrastructure, thereby safeguarding steady and sound economic growth and continuously and rapidly improving the living standards of the people.