Patrick Siegman
@siegman.biz
Transportation planner and economist. Founder, Siegman & Associates. Formerly Principal & Shareholder at Nelson\Nygaard. LinkedIn: https://tinyurl.com/5cekhrjh
Most of the groups that endorsed California's #AB2097, which removed virtually all minimum parking regulations near frequent transit, should be willing to support removing minimum parking mandates statewide. Who else would be willing to sign on?
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billAn...
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billAn...
November 22, 2025 at 10:11 PM
Most of the groups that endorsed California's #AB2097, which removed virtually all minimum parking regulations near frequent transit, should be willing to support removing minimum parking mandates statewide. Who else would be willing to sign on?
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billAn...
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billAn...
Sources:
www.pew.org/en/research-...
Center for Fire Statistics (CFS CTIF). 2025. World Fire Statistics Report No. 30. International Association of Fire and Rescue Services (CTIF). www.ctif.org/sites/defaul...
www.pew.org/en/research-...
Center for Fire Statistics (CFS CTIF). 2025. World Fire Statistics Report No. 30. International Association of Fire and Rescue Services (CTIF). www.ctif.org/sites/defaul...
November 22, 2025 at 8:03 PM
Sources:
www.pew.org/en/research-...
Center for Fire Statistics (CFS CTIF). 2025. World Fire Statistics Report No. 30. International Association of Fire and Rescue Services (CTIF). www.ctif.org/sites/defaul...
www.pew.org/en/research-...
Center for Fire Statistics (CFS CTIF). 2025. World Fire Statistics Report No. 30. International Association of Fire and Rescue Services (CTIF). www.ctif.org/sites/defaul...
I would like to see this table updated to add a new column listing fire deaths per 100,000 people. This would reveal that #Switzerland allows single-stair high-rise towers and has a fire death rate five times LOWER than the United States.
#BuildingCode #FireCode #Firefighting
#BuildingCode #FireCode #Firefighting
November 22, 2025 at 8:03 PM
I would like to see this table updated to add a new column listing fire deaths per 100,000 people. This would reveal that #Switzerland allows single-stair high-rise towers and has a fire death rate five times LOWER than the United States.
#BuildingCode #FireCode #Firefighting
#BuildingCode #FireCode #Firefighting
This is a major expansion of the territory where #Waymo is allowed to operate its robotaxis. To be sure, they aren’t yet allowed to carry paying passengers in all these areas, but we can expect that to follow.
November 22, 2025 at 3:39 AM
This is a major expansion of the territory where #Waymo is allowed to operate its robotaxis. To be sure, they aren’t yet allowed to carry paying passengers in all these areas, but we can expect that to follow.
The overall fire death rate in the UK is far lower than the fire death rate in the United States. Even in 2017, the year the Grenfell tragedy happened, it was far lower. Do you think the UK should adopt the building codes and firefighting practices that have given the US its high fire death rate?
November 22, 2025 at 12:58 AM
The overall fire death rate in the UK is far lower than the fire death rate in the United States. Even in 2017, the year the Grenfell tragedy happened, it was far lower. Do you think the UK should adopt the building codes and firefighting practices that have given the US its high fire death rate?
#Italy allows single-stair apartment buildings up to 26 stories high. U.S. cities (with rare exceptions) limit single-stair apartment buildings to 3 stories. Which one has a higher fire death rate?
The United States! The fire death rate in the United States is more than twice as high as in Italy.
The United States! The fire death rate in the United States is more than twice as high as in Italy.
November 22, 2025 at 12:25 AM
#Italy allows single-stair apartment buildings up to 26 stories high. U.S. cities (with rare exceptions) limit single-stair apartment buildings to 3 stories. Which one has a higher fire death rate?
The United States! The fire death rate in the United States is more than twice as high as in Italy.
The United States! The fire death rate in the United States is more than twice as high as in Italy.
If our governments compiled good data on both fire and traffic fatalities and injuries, we could study what works and what doesn’t to improve overall life safety, including both fire and traffic safety. We might become a country with a good safety record, instead of lagging behind our peers.
November 21, 2025 at 1:02 AM
If our governments compiled good data on both fire and traffic fatalities and injuries, we could study what works and what doesn’t to improve overall life safety, including both fire and traffic safety. We might become a country with a good safety record, instead of lagging behind our peers.
To build cities that are both safe and affordable, you need to study what works and what doesn’t. It’s hard to do that when critical safety data (like the number of people killed in fires) varies wildly from source to source, and data on where & how fatal fires happened isn’t publicly available.🧵
November 21, 2025 at 1:02 AM
To build cities that are both safe and affordable, you need to study what works and what doesn’t. It’s hard to do that when critical safety data (like the number of people killed in fires) varies wildly from source to source, and data on where & how fatal fires happened isn’t publicly available.🧵
I’m sure you mean well. However, all of the credible evidence shows that minimum parking mandates have done great damage. For example, these mandates have driven up rents and home prices for people who can’t afford a car.
November 20, 2025 at 7:20 PM
I’m sure you mean well. However, all of the credible evidence shows that minimum parking mandates have done great damage. For example, these mandates have driven up rents and home prices for people who can’t afford a car.
Here’s the sad reality. Minimum parking mandates have caused great harm. They greatly increased driving and congestion, leaving streetcars and buses stuck in traffic. They undermined transit ridership. That declining ridership led to declining revenue and service cuts.
November 20, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Here’s the sad reality. Minimum parking mandates have caused great harm. They greatly increased driving and congestion, leaving streetcars and buses stuck in traffic. They undermined transit ridership. That declining ridership led to declining revenue and service cuts.
He continues, "Since then, to my knowledge, no member of the planning profession has argued that parking requirements do not cause these harmful effects. Instead, a flood of recent research has shown they do cause these harmful effects.” [Parking and the City, page 2.]
November 20, 2025 at 6:05 PM
He continues, "Since then, to my knowledge, no member of the planning profession has argued that parking requirements do not cause these harmful effects. Instead, a flood of recent research has shown they do cause these harmful effects.” [Parking and the City, page 2.]
In Parking and the City, Shoup notes that minimum parking mandates “subsidize cars, increase traffic congestion, pollute the air, encourage sprawl, increase housing costs, degrade urban design, prevent walkability, damage the economy, and penalize people who cannot afford a car."
November 20, 2025 at 6:05 PM
In Parking and the City, Shoup notes that minimum parking mandates “subsidize cars, increase traffic congestion, pollute the air, encourage sprawl, increase housing costs, degrade urban design, prevent walkability, damage the economy, and penalize people who cannot afford a car."
How much of the perceived difference in lifestyle preferences between the US and Europe can be explained by building codes? Could it be that fewer Americans choose apartments, because America’s peculiar building codes make apartments expensive?🧵
November 19, 2025 at 10:48 PM
How much of the perceived difference in lifestyle preferences between the US and Europe can be explained by building codes? Could it be that fewer Americans choose apartments, because America’s peculiar building codes make apartments expensive?🧵
One thing I appreciated about Donald Shoup is that he didn't waste time speculating about how many automobiles Americans might prefer to buy if minimum parking mandates were removed.
November 19, 2025 at 5:15 PM
One thing I appreciated about Donald Shoup is that he didn't waste time speculating about how many automobiles Americans might prefer to buy if minimum parking mandates were removed.
Why does America perform poorly on fire safety, traffic safety, and affordability? Part of the problem is poor data. That hinders research. For example, about 28% of local fire departments in the US do NOT report fire deaths to the National Fire Incident Reporting System.
November 18, 2025 at 12:13 AM
Why does America perform poorly on fire safety, traffic safety, and affordability? Part of the problem is poor data. That hinders research. For example, about 28% of local fire departments in the US do NOT report fire deaths to the National Fire Incident Reporting System.
The model fire code published by the ICC, a nonprofit, prohibits “traffic calming devices“ on most streets unless approved by “the fire code official.” Traffic calming devices are defined broadly and include any physical measure intended to reduce speeds.
November 17, 2025 at 3:51 AM
The model fire code published by the ICC, a nonprofit, prohibits “traffic calming devices“ on most streets unless approved by “the fire code official.” Traffic calming devices are defined broadly and include any physical measure intended to reduce speeds.
Try checking the actual taxes paid on properties before and after new apartments are built on those parcels. You might find yourself reassessing your opinions. For example, here's the Gaia Building in downtown #Berkeley.
November 16, 2025 at 3:26 AM
Try checking the actual taxes paid on properties before and after new apartments are built on those parcels. You might find yourself reassessing your opinions. For example, here's the Gaia Building in downtown #Berkeley.
When asked to respond true or false to the statement, "The construction of market rate homes in disadvantaged areas does not cause gentrification or displacement, but instead prevents it.", Mayor Bass responded "That's false. That's completely false."
calmatters.org/housing/2023...
calmatters.org/housing/2023...
November 15, 2025 at 8:12 PM
When asked to respond true or false to the statement, "The construction of market rate homes in disadvantaged areas does not cause gentrification or displacement, but instead prevents it.", Mayor Bass responded "That's false. That's completely false."
calmatters.org/housing/2023...
calmatters.org/housing/2023...
"And everyone shared an abiding dread that new homes might make it more difficult to find on-street parking.”
I love the way solving America’s housing shortage always comes back to managing curb parking well. It makes me feel needed.😊
I love the way solving America’s housing shortage always comes back to managing curb parking well. It makes me feel needed.😊
November 15, 2025 at 1:57 AM
"And everyone shared an abiding dread that new homes might make it more difficult to find on-street parking.”
I love the way solving America’s housing shortage always comes back to managing curb parking well. It makes me feel needed.😊
I love the way solving America’s housing shortage always comes back to managing curb parking well. It makes me feel needed.😊
California’s use of fossil gas to generate electricity has fallen ~37% in the last 2 years. When it drops to zero, what should we do with all the obsolete plants?
November 14, 2025 at 1:11 AM
California’s use of fossil gas to generate electricity has fallen ~37% in the last 2 years. When it drops to zero, what should we do with all the obsolete plants?
To successfully remove minimum parking mandates, cities need to do just one thing. Use prices and/or permits to manage on-street parking, where and when necessary, to keep it from becoming overcrowded. The story makes no mention of any effort to do that. I hope Honolulu is working on it.
November 11, 2025 at 1:39 AM
To successfully remove minimum parking mandates, cities need to do just one thing. Use prices and/or permits to manage on-street parking, where and when necessary, to keep it from becoming overcrowded. The story makes no mention of any effort to do that. I hope Honolulu is working on it.
Removing minimum parking mandates also makes for-sale homes more affordable. A #SanFrancisco study of the effect of parking mandates found that code-required parking increases home prices and that 24% more households could afford houses if they did not include parking.
November 9, 2025 at 7:25 PM
Removing minimum parking mandates also makes for-sale homes more affordable. A #SanFrancisco study of the effect of parking mandates found that code-required parking increases home prices and that 24% more households could afford houses if they did not include parking.
Why yes, removing minimum parking mandates leads to lower rents. University of California researchers using a nationwide data set found that requiring a single garage space for each apartment increases rents by an average of 17%.
November 9, 2025 at 7:25 PM
Why yes, removing minimum parking mandates leads to lower rents. University of California researchers using a nationwide data set found that requiring a single garage space for each apartment increases rents by an average of 17%.
Dear Urban Land Institute members,
Welcome to #SanFrancisco. Let me apologize in advance for the lack of ample free parking. But now that we've removed all our minimum parking regulations, we hope you will enjoy the flowers instead.
Welcome to #SanFrancisco. Let me apologize in advance for the lack of ample free parking. But now that we've removed all our minimum parking regulations, we hope you will enjoy the flowers instead.
November 7, 2025 at 10:30 PM
Dear Urban Land Institute members,
Welcome to #SanFrancisco. Let me apologize in advance for the lack of ample free parking. But now that we've removed all our minimum parking regulations, we hope you will enjoy the flowers instead.
Welcome to #SanFrancisco. Let me apologize in advance for the lack of ample free parking. But now that we've removed all our minimum parking regulations, we hope you will enjoy the flowers instead.