Rise in paid parking areas across the Netherlands

Over the past decade, it has become increasingly difficult to score a free parking spot in the Netherlands. The number of paid parking areas has increased by more than a third, according to an analysis by BNR and data company Spotzi. The broadcaster said that if you put all paid parking districts together, it would equal the area of the Dutch island Ameland.

This is the first inventory of the total surface of parking areas in the Netherlands since 2013. The data shows that there are more paid parking areas in almost all municipalities.

This increase is especially prevalent in large and medium-sized cities, but also in touristic areas. Since 2013 there was a 33 percent rise in paid parking areas along the Zeeland coast, which now covers a total of 286 square kilometers.

"What I also find striking is that in 2013, you could still largely park for free on the Zeeland coast, but that is no longer the case," said Spotzi CEO Remco Dolman.

Parking in the center of Amsterdam can cost well over 100 euros per day, said ANWB public affairs advisor Chris Hottentot in an interview with BNR. "It has become a revenue model," he stated. The city collects about a billion euros in taxes per year, a third of which are parking fees.

Dolman also questioned the high cost of parking outside of central city districts. "I go to Toronto a lot, and the parking rates there are about a quarter of the parking rates in Amsterdam. You sometimes wonder what the underlying idea is: earn money or manage parking pressure?"