Circling for a space

One of the constant challenges of living in the Bay Area is parking.

The financial markets and my office were all closed for Good Friday, giving me a great opportunity for a mid-morning workout. When I got to the gym it was apparent that most folks weren't as fortunate as me, they were working. That means downtown Oakland, where my gym is, was hopping. Nowhere to park. I drove around the same four-block area for twenty minutes without any luck and finally caved and parked in the Kaiser Center Garage. Twelve bucks for 79 minutes! I suppose it's cheaper than a heart attack.

I heard once that there are something like 5 million cars in the Bay Area and only 3 million places to park them. That means that, at any given moment, there have to be 2 million cars moving. My guess is that most of them are just circling, looking for a space.