parking garage

Faced with the prospect of becoming the biggest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history, Stockton, Calif., decided on a novel gambit: They just stopped paying some of their bills.

City dwellers know that finding an affordable downtown parking spot involves cutthroat competition. And in some urban centers, even the winners pay through the nose for a place to stash their cars. Find out where the rates are worst (and the high price we all pay for "free" parking.)

In the United States, where having a car is a God-given right akin to the right to assemble, getting free parking is almost as holy.Whether you drive a Hummer or a Prius, finding free or relatively cheap parking for the 95% of the time when you're not driving is relatively easy.Free parking -- at...