Car Parks: The Urban Wastelands We Pretend Not to See

Why Are UK Car Parks So Awful—And Can We Do Better?

We’ve all experienced it. The multi-storey car park where the ramps are too tight, the spaces too small, and the lighting makes you feel like you’re in a crime drama. Or the vast surface car park that transforms into a wind-blown wasteland in winter and a furnace in summer.

Car parks are (apparently) essential to our towns and cities, yet they are treated as an afterthought. Instead of functional, attractive, and sustainable spaces, they too often resemble lifeless, soulless voids. But do they have to? Can we reimagine car parks as assets rather than necessary evils?

1. Surface Car Parks: A Black Hole of Potential

Surface car parks dominate town centres, retail parks, and business districts, consuming vast amounts of space without adding anything of value. They are designed for one purpose: storing cars. But at what cost?

Urban Dead Zones

Surface car parks create dead spaces that suck the life out of urban areas. A street lined with shops, cafes, and trees is inviting; a vast expanse of tarmac, not so much. Large car parks fragment towns and cities, creating pedestrian-hostile environments that discourage walking, cycling, and public transport use.

The Heat Island Effect

Ever parked in an open car park in the height of summer? The tarmac absorbs and radiates heat, making it an unbearable place to be. Cities with excessive surface parking experience higher temperatures, worsening climate change effects and making urban areas less comfortable or enjoyable spaces.

Security Risks

Poorly designed surface car parks become havens for crime. With minimal lighting, little surveillance, and few people around after dark, they can feel unsafe—especially for pedestrians.

The Case for Solar Carports

Instead of endless blacktop, why not introduce solar canopies? These provide shade and shelter while generating clean energy. They also transform dull car parks into more attractive and functional spaces.

Successful examples include:

• Northumberland County Council’s Solar Carport Project – An 800kW solar carport array designed to save between ￡100,000 and ￡150,000 in energy costs annually.
• France’s Mandate for Solar Car Parks – From 2023, all large car parks in France must install solar panels, contributing to national energy goals.

Wouldn’t it make sense for the UK to follow suit?

2. Multi-Storey Car Parks: The Brutalist Nightmare

If surface car parks are lifeless voids, then multi-storeys are concrete prisons. Why are they so universally dreadful?

The ‘Prison Block’ Aesthetic

Most multi-storey car parks resemble something from a dystopian sci-fi film. Blank concrete walls, harsh lighting, and confusing layouts make them deeply unwelcoming spaces. Despite advances in urban design, many still look like relics from the 1960s.

Confusing Layouts

Who hasn’t wandered aimlessly through a multi-storey car park, struggling to find their car? Poor signage, identical-looking levels, and disorientating designs turn a simple task into an endurance sport.

Doomed Lifts and Stairs

Lifts are out of order. Stairwells smell like a public toilet. The design flaws of many multi-storey car parks make them actively unpleasant places to be.

The Case for Redevelopment

Multi-storey car parks don’t have to be soulless concrete bunkers. They can be repurposed into vibrant mixed-use spaces:

• Peckham Levels, London – A disused car park transformed into a cultural hub with bars, workspaces, and events.
• Sydney’s Green Square Car Park – Underground parking with a park on top, integrating green space with urban infrastructure.

Wouldn’t it be smarter to design car parks with future repurposing in mind?

3. The Future of Car Parks: Do We Even Need Them?

With the rise of public transport, cycling, and car-sharing schemes, the role of car parks is changing. Should we still be designing car parks as if we’re in the 1980s?

Should We Ban New Surface Car Parks?

Many councils are already moving towards restricting new surface car parks in urban centres. Instead of dedicating prime land to parked cars, why not prioritise housing, green spaces, or mixed-use developments?

Should Multi-Storey Car Parks Be Designed for Future Conversion?

A car park might be needed today, but what about in 30 years? Multi-storey car parks could be built with higher ceilings, flexible layouts, and infrastructure that allows for conversion into offices, housing, or community spaces.

Should Developers Pay a ‘Car Park Ugliness Tax’?

If developers continue to build ugly, uninspiring car parks, should they be financially penalised? Slightly controversial - but a small surcharge could incentivise better design and ensure car parks contribute positively to the urban environment.

Conclusion: A Call to (Re)Design

Car parks don’t have to be soulless blacktops or concrete nightmares. With a little imagination—solar panels, mixed-use spaces, green infrastructure—we could make them an asset to our cities rather than a necessary evil.

And finally.........

What’s the worst car park you’ve ever seen? Do please drop your horror stories in the comments!