Adelaide’s New Parking Mandate: Bigger Garages, Bigger Homes?

South Australia’s government is pushing a new Bill requiring developers to deliver stricter—and bigger—parking standards. Think one car parking spot per one‑bedroom unit, two per larger household, with wider stalls. There’s flexibility—central “parking precincts” could be allowed where approved. At a glance, it feels backward—especially when global urban planning is trending away from cars. Planning Minister Nick Champion frames it as practical and flexible. But industry voices warn: bigger garages aren’t affordable spaces. They’re price tags. On paper, “parking precincts” sound creative. But in execution, they often end up as underused lots or buried costs in HOA fees. It’s not the suburban pathology we need reinforcement of. Still, there’s value in acknowledging residents drive. Not everyone can bike or bus. But planning should think bigger—cities can’t afford to bake in space-hungry parking. What if we instead layered on transit planning, incentivized shared mobility, or prioritized street-level bikes and micro-mobility over garage depth?