UK cities ranked by parking availability and average costs

Bradford named hardest UK city for finding a parking space

Bradford named UK city where drivers are least likely to find a parking space New research has identified the UK cities where finding a car parking space could be most difficult, with Bradford ranking as the toughest place for drivers. The Autotrader study compared parking availability with car ownership across some of the UK’s most densely populated cities to assess where parking supply falls short. Bradford has the lowest parking availability Bradford has just 85 parking spaces for every 1,000 cars, according to the research, with 18,394 spaces serving around 215,600 vehicles. Sunderland ranks second for parking pressure, with 11,461 spaces for approximately 115,500 cars, giving the city 99 spaces per 1,000 vehicles. Leeds is third on the list, with 44,735 parking spaces serving around 319,600 cars. That works out at 140 spaces per 1,000 vehicles. Sheffield and Birmingham complete the five cities with the lowest parking availability, recording 143 and 153 spaces per 1,000 cars respectively. The study suggests that limited parking capacity can make finding a space more difficult in busy locations, including city centres and popular destinations. Manchester has the most parking spaces At the other end of the rankings, Manchester was identified as the UK city with the highest parking availability relative to the number of cars. The research found 120,265 parking spaces for around 163,500 cars in Manchester, equivalent to 736 spaces per 1,000 vehicles. London ranked second with 419 spaces per 1,000 cars, followed by Leicester with 361. Nottingham recorded 303 spaces per 1,000 vehicles, while Newcastle completed the top five with 294. Parking costs, however, vary considerably between cities. London was the most expensive in the study, with an average parking ticket price of £14. Brighton & Hove followed at £12, while Salford recorded an average of £9 and Birmingham £8. Bradford was next at £6, alongside Hull. At the cheaper end of the table, Sunderland had the lowest average parking price at £2. Coventry, Milton Keynes, Plymouth and Sheffield each averaged £3, while Manchester, Leeds, Leicester, Newcastle and Nottingham were among those recording an average of £4. The research highlights how parking availability and parking costs can differ significantly depending on the city, with some areas offering considerably more spaces while others face greater pressure from the number of cars on the road.