Skip to Content
Streetsblog Los Angeles home
Streetsblog Los Angeles home
Log In
Streetsblog USA

Parking Madness Elite Eight: El Cerrito vs. Chicago

We're two weeks into our Parking Madness competition, and only a few parking craters are still standing.

Today's Elite Eight matchup pairs a Bay Area suburb with America's third largest city: It's El Cerrito, California vs. Chicago.

First up is El Cerrito, which was singled out for shame by one of our readers because of this crater's proximity to a BART station providing quick access to San Francisco.

bart1
false

The submitter pointed out that almost every BART station looks something like this, so in a sense the El Cerrito parking crater is standing in for the failure of an entire region to produce walkable development near transit.

Meanwhile, the Chicago crater suffers from sports venue syndrome:

chicago
false

We've seen this pretty consistently throughout the competition: In St. Louis, Grand Rapids, and Chicago, the spaces around public arenas are ghost towns inhabited only by cars.

This area, readers tell us, is especially disappointing because it has good transit access and is less than two miles away from the Loop. What a far cry from the walkability of Wrigleyville.

Tell us which crater you think deserves to reach the Final Four of Parking Madness.

parking_madness_2014_10
false

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog Los Angeles

This Week In Livable Streets

Metro L.A. River path deadline, Transit Equity Day celebrates Rosa Parks, Whittier Narrows ride, Metro Public Safety, and more.

February 2, 2026

Eyes on the Street: WeHo Paints All of its Bike Lanes Green

West Hollywood is installing modest safety improvements on Fairfax Avenue, San Vicente Boulevard, and Santa Monica Boulevard

February 2, 2026

Monday’s Headlines

ICE, Culver City, Waymo, Foothill A Line, World Cup, Transit Equity Day, Norwalk, car-nage, and more

February 2, 2026

Comment on Metro L.A. River Path Project by Monday, February 2

SBLA Editor recommends trimming scope towards a fiscally feasible 8-mile project, not Metro's $1B proposed design

January 30, 2026

Friday’s Headlines

ICE terror, national shutdown, participating businesses, protests, journalist arrest, ICE backlash, unity rides

January 30, 2026

Alhambra Approves New Pilot Bus Routes

City council knew rerouting wouldn’t please everyone, but eventually it passed 4-0. The bus network reconfiguration is projected to increase ridership 19%.

January 29, 2026
See all posts