Manchester has been named the best place for parking in the UK despite a rise in fines and complaints

A new study has suggested that Manchester is the best city for parking in the UK - yes, really. Ask any Mancunian whether they’d agree with such sentiment, and they’ll undoubtedly throw a few choice words your way as they recall the nightmares of finding parking spaces near the arena before an Ed Sheeran gig.

The research from car finance and loan firm Moneybarn analysed the number of NCP parking spaces versus the number of licensed cars in each UK city to reveal the ‘best’ city for parking. With 37.77 parking spaces per 1,000 cars, Manchester came out on top of the list ahead of Cambridge's 35.92 spaces per 1,000 and Colchester's 28.08.

While the numbers relate to the amount of possible spaces in town, is it fair to really call Manchester the best city for parking? Well, probably not. In the last few months alone, the Manchester Evening News has covered plenty of parking woes across Greater Manchester, from cowboy parking firms dumping cars on streets near Manchester Airport to people being fined just for queuing to get out of car parks.

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It was reported in 2020 that there are currently around 30,000 off-street car parking spaces within Manchester city centre, most of which are run by private companies like NCP and Euro Car Parks.

At the same time, some 12,500 spaces are expected to be lost in the next few years due to increased redevelopment within the city. While the number of vehicles in Manchester has dwindled since the pandemic, and as more initiatives favouring bikes and public transport roll out, many still face difficulty finding a spot. There also seems to be a lack of confusion about how to park too.

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