About 44% of L.A. County’s pavement may be unnecessary

An analysis of hardscape in Los Angeles County found that some 44% of the county’s 312,000 acres of pavement may not be essential for roads, sidewalks, or parking.

A report, DepaveLA, the first parcel-level analysis to map all paved surfaces across the county, added data on heat, flooding, and tree canopy, to develop a new framework for understanding where removing concrete and asphalt could make the biggest difference for public health and the climate.

A key finding was that nearly 70% of non-core pavement—hardscape that does not include essential infrastructure such as roads—is on private property. Much of that pavement is composed of parking lots, especially large, privately owned commercial and industrial lots. 

The study found that converting 90-degree parking into angled parking could allow up to 1,600 acres of pavement to be eliminated to add trees and stormwater capture without reducing the number of parking spaces.

Residential properties could reduce pavement by cutting a 6x6-foot tree well in their patios, which would remove 1,530 acres of pavement, while on average only reducing patio space by 3%. 

School campuses, which are on average 40% covered in pavement, are also ripe for de-paving. With hardscape making students more vulnerable to extreme heat in the hottest weather, swapping greenery for asphalt could have health benefits.