Dornbirn parking garage wins over critics with 430,000 annual uses

Dornbirn’s city-centre parking garage records about 430,000 parking transactions a year and has become a profitable operation, ORF Vorarlberg reports. When it opened in 2008, critics questioned whether such a large facility would attract enough users.

Demand reached full capacity within two years of opening and has remained strong, said managing director Herbert Kaufmann. The garage was built in 10 months, with 433 spaces costing about €7 million. Annual revenue is around €800,000. Kaufmann said that, despite maintenance and other necessary work, the project benefits taxpayers.

Kaufmann attributed the garage’s popularity to its links to major roads and its short walking distance to the city centre and the Kulturhaus. He also said parking search traffic on the streets had fallen. Digital payment is increasingly common: apps are now used for 34% of short-term parking transactions.

The facility has been developed to support travel by different modes. Public transport stops are directly above the garage, alongside bicycle rental stations. Two car-sharing vehicles are based inside, and six charging points are available for electric vehicles. Further expansion is possible, Kaufmann said, but there are no concrete plans.

City planner Herbert Bork, of the Stadtland planning office, said the garage was intended to support the city centre by providing convenient access to shops and restaurants. He argued that central parking was important to avoid disadvantaging city-centre businesses, given the large number of free parking spaces on the outskirts and the limited supply of paid spaces in the centre.

Bork said any parking garage attracts traffic, but in Dornbirn the total number of parking spaces had been reduced. He said that was crucial: a garage should not create additional parking capacity in the city centre.