Having a hard time finding parking downtown? Here's why

Altaf Sovani was 15 minutes late for a meeting he was running in downtown Ottawa because he was driving in circles looking for a parking space.

"My routine starts maybe around 10 o'clock so when I get here … normally the parking is all taken," Sovani said.

"It's frustrating."

Sovani isn't alone. Downtown parking trends in Ottawa have shifted during the pandemic with demand exceeding supply three days a week and empty spaces being reserved for monthly pass holders who don't always show up.

Data from the City Hall parking lot in September and October shows spaces are practically full, but only on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

A number of factors drive the mid-week parking crunch including Ottawa's largest employer — the federal government — mandating employees back to the office, but only part time.

Demand exceeds supply

Brent Robinson, director of operations with parking management firm Indigo, said office workers often choose to work from home on Mondays and Fridays.

"Before COVID the total number of parking transactions was shared across five days, now everyone wants to work and park Tuesday to Thursday," he said.

• Federal public servants mandated to return to office 2-3 days a week by March 31

Trudy Samuel has caught onto the trend and tries to zig when others zag by working from the office on Mondays and Fridays.

"I don't really have any great tips, it's just everyday is a new day," the federal public servant said.

Transit ridership in Ottawa has also lagged behind national urban trends since April 2020 and some of those riders instead choose to drive downtown.

In October 2019, for example, there were about 9,600,000 customer trips on OC Transpo. There were 6,400,000 in October 2023.

Is monthly parking the answer?

Parking attendants who spoke on background to CBC say they're required to save enough spaces for monthly pass holders even if they don't come to work.

It can be frustrating for drivers who see empty spaces inside lots but are told they can't park there.

Mal Watt is a contractor who spends about 20 minutes a day looking for parking downtown.

"It's awful, it takes up so much of my life," Watt said.

"It's hard to find a spot. When you do find a spot, you have a limited time to park there and it's very expensive."

Annabelle Cloutier, executive director of strategy and communications at the National Arts Centre (NAC), said it's been an adjustment running a public parking lot downtown.

The NAC has to put a staff member at the parking garage door to ensure the lot doesn't overflow on its busiest days.

"We try to make sure those with a pass have access and can come in," Cloutier said, adding ticket buyers and those there for meetings can use the short-term parking.

"(We're) trying to make space for everybody, but of course it's not necessarily perfect; there's a way to go."

Those who snag a monthly pass at a lot downtown can expect to pay between $200 and $300 a month to Indigo, according to Robinson.

He said drivers who push further out of the core can expect to pay between $50 and $150.