5 of the world’s coolest car parks

As parking experts, we have seen our fair share of car parks and we are sad to say that most of the time they are not very exciting. However, over the years we have been on the hunt for inspiration of well-designed, creative, customer-centric parking facilities.

It’s refreshing to see car parks designed not only to fulfil its utilitarian purpose of vehicle storage but that are also aesthetically pleasing, serve as an art exhibition space or a place for the community, etc.

We selected five car parks which illustrate these ideals.

1. 2km3 at Saint Gervais, France

 

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#ptcinspiration of the week. The 2km3 at Saint Gervais, France is a contemporary art platform. Several international artists transformed the car park into a free alternative museum. Photos by JY Raffort . . . #parking #carpark #placemaking #parkingconsultants #urbanart

A post shared by ptc. (@instaptc) on Oct 7, 2018 at 6:03pm PDT

2. Park ‘n’ Play, Denmark

 

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#ptcinspiration of the week. Park’n’Play is a multifunctional space! This multi-storey car park in Copenhagen, Denmark, has a recreational rooftop area serving as a public amenity. The rooftop is accessed by an external stairway which forms part of the building interesting façade. Design by JAJA Architects Photos by Rasmus Hjortshøj . . . #carpark #carparkdesing #parking #architectureinspo #architectureinpiration #placemaking

A post shared by ptc. (@instaptc) on Nov 5, 2018 at 4:37pm PST

3. Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc, Brussels

 

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#ptcinspiration of the week. The staff car park for the Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc hospital in Brussels gets a lot of attention for its beautiful structure. The building, housing 985 parking spaces, has a wooden façade with a fluid undulating design to create a unique look. Credit: Modulo Architects and De Jong Gortemaker Algra Architects . . . #carparkdesign #architectureinspo #architectureinspiration #carparkfacade #designinspo #parking #parkingconsultants #parkingexperts

A post shared by ptc. (@instaptc) on Mar 26, 2018 at 7:00pm PDT

Read more about this car park here.

4. The Stadsberget, Sweden

 

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#ptcinspiration of the week. ‍ The Stadsberget (urban mountain in Swedish) is another example of a multi-purpose car park. The building, located in Piteå, Sweden, serves as a cultural and outdoor activity space for the community. During the summer it is an amphitheatre and plaza and in the winter months, it turns into a sledging slope. ‍ ‍ Credit: White Arkitekter and Henning Larsen Architects ‍ . ‍ . ‍ . ‍ #parking #carpark #carparkdesign #parkingdesign #architectureinspo #architectureinspiration #designinspo #designinspiration #architecturegram #architecturedaily #buildingdesign #amazingarchitecture #arc_only #facade #facadedesign

A post shared by ptc. (@instaptc) on May 12, 2019 at 8:43pm PDT

5. Katwijk aan Zee, Netherlands

 

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#ptcinspiration of the week An elegant underground car park perfectly integrated with the local landscape. This is the case of a parking garage in Katwijk aan Zee, Netherlands, elected by the Royal Institute of Dutch Architects as the Best Dutch Building of the Year 2016. Photo credit: Royal Institute of Dutch Architects ​. . . #carpark #architecture #carparkdesign #civildesign #parking​ #carparkinspiration #architectureinspiration​

A post shared by ptc. (@instaptc) on Mar 11, 2018 at 6:34pm PDT

Read more about this car park here.

Which one is your favourite? Are there other car parks that inspire you? Tell us in the comments below.