Downtown Chicago is a downer for drivers

Chicago dedicates just 4% of its downtown space to parking.

• That's one of the smallest percentages among big cities nationwide, according to a new report from Parking Reform Network.

Why it matters: More parking lots mean less walkability, the network asserts.

What they're saying: "With all this parking, little land [is] left for anything else, making housing more expensive, less dense and farther apart," the network says on its website. "It's clear that if we want to have walkable cities, we need cities that are less parkable."

Zoom out: Chicago has a greater share of central city space devoted to parking than New York City and Washington, D.C., and San Francisco devotes the least parking acreage in its downtown.

• Yes, but: We're a far cry from driver-friendly cities like Houston, where parking gobbles up 26% of downtown.
• Other asphalt lovers include Columbus, Ohio, and Arlington, Texas.

Check out all the parking lot maps here