At the start of any beach trip, there is nothing quite like stepping into the sand and glimpsing the waves. An ocean of possibilities lies ahead of you: surfing, beachcombing, swimming, picnicking, fishing, relaxing, and the list goes on. But beach lovers are seeing a troubling trend that is making it harder to even get to that first step – reductions in public parking availability and increasing fees.
Along shorelines of the Great Lakes and Eastern U.S., our Surfrider Foundation network has seen hikes in parking fees, the loss of public parking spots, and other restrictions on public parking, all of which create more barriers for beachgoers trying to enjoy their time on the coast. While the approach may vary in different localities, the result is the same: less public access to public beaches.
When local governments propose changes to public parking near beaches, we often hear some of the following as justification for the new policies. Although these arguments may have some truth behind them, they tend to fall short:
- Public Safety: Instead of investing in better traffic management or safe access points, towns push restrictions that make beaches harder to reach. Safety concerns are real, but parking bans are often a blunt tool that excludes rather than protects.
- Environmental Claims: While protecting dunes and habitats is important, restrictions are frequently applied unevenly, targeting public roadside parking without providing other public spaces or options.
- Community Aesthetic: Concerns about “overcrowding” or losing “small-town charm” often mask attempts to keep beaches quiet for residents at the expense of the broader public.
- Budget Issues: Towns’ overreliance on parking fees as a funding source for beach upkeep pushes costs onto beachgoers instead of exploring fairer, broader funding options like hotel or property taxes. It is not always clear to the public how the revenue generated by beach access fees are allocated in municipal budgets.
- Local-Only Access: Reserving parking for residents or charging exorbitant nonresident fees effectively transforms public beaches into private ones — a practice at odds with the public trust doctrine and other legal protections for equitable public access to beaches and coasts.
Restricting and reducing public parking has significant, far-reaching consequences. Depending on the severity of the change to public parking, the tradeoffs are generally not balanced between what is gained and what is lost. A growing trend of public parking space reductions and exorbitant parking fees near our coasts has negative impacts on access, equity, and economics.
Why this matters:
- Access: Restrictive parking undermines meaningful public access. Even when the public has a legal right to access and enjoy the beach, lack of parking (and alternative modes of public transportation) can make them practically impossible to get to. This is inconsistent with public rights afforded by the public trust doctrine, certain state laws, and other legal protections that provide and protect public rights for coastal access.
- Equity: A practice of systemic discrimination, segregation, and racial inequity in the U.S. has hindered communities of color from accessing the beach and diminished the quality of access available. Fees and reduced public parking can preclude equitable access, making it harder for low-income communities, seniors, people with disabilities, and many others who rely on cars and parking to get to the beach.
- Economics: Public beaches generate billions of dollars in tourism and local spending. When access is limited, businesses suffer and entire communities lose economic opportunities.
Examples: Public Parking Under Threat
Surfrider’s network has noticed an uptick in cases of public parking under threat in numerous cities and towns along the East Coast and Great Lakes. Here are a few examples:
- Scarborough, Maine: The daily parking pass rose from $15 to $20 in 2024, and the non-resident parking pass jumped from $150 to $200 in 2025. Additionally, the hours that paid parking is required were extended; what used to be 9 am to 5 pm, is now 7 am to 7 pm.
- Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina: Surfrider’s Cape Fear Chapter has been working with a local partner organization, Surf Mamas, to help restore free parking after 5 pm and maintain free morning parking. In the past few years, Wrightsville Beach has seen an increase in not only hours that require payment to park, but increase in price as well. In the last 10 years, hourly rates have doubled from $2.50/hr to $5/hr and daily rates have more than doubled from $15/day to $35/day.
- Gasparilla Island, Florida: Home to the popular Boca Grande Beach, the barrier island significantly overhauled public parking availability in August 2025. The new county ordinance drastically reduces public parking spaces and institutes strict time limitations for business customers. The new parking restrictions pose a significant challenge for the public’s enjoyment of the beach and could negatively impact local businesses and restaurants.
- Chicago, Illinois: Perhaps the most egregious examples can be found on Chicago’s north shore, where numerous municipalities employ exclusionary parking practices clearly meant to deter non-residents. For example, in Lake Forest, IL, there is no onsite parking for non-residents unless they are able to shell out $910 dollars for an annual parking pass to park in the lots available only to residents. This is in addition to a $25 daily entrance fee per person. If non-residents are unable to purchase an annual parking pass, they are otherwise advised to park in the business district or at the train station, which is a minimum distance of 3/4 of a mile away. Transit-takers seeking to avoid parking therefore also face a 3/4 mile trek, which is an insurmountable hurdle for many people.
What Can Be Done to Fight for Beach Access?
Limitations and restrictions on parking, which significantly interfere with public beach access, is a big problem – but Surfrider’s grassroots network is built for these fights. There are solutions and compromises available that allow for environmental protection and beach maintenance while facilitating low-impact, affordable, and equitable public access.
If you want to know more about what you and your community can do to fight for and protect beach access, please check out the next blog on parking restrictions, Keeping Beaches Open for All: How to Organize Against Public Parking Barriers.
If you want to learn more about beach access and the actions Surfrider is taking, check out our Beach Access blogs.