Gasoline costs more than ever, but O'ahu drivers are getting a little relief when it comes to parking downtown, according to a new survey.

Median monthly prices for a parking stall in downtown Ho-nolulu garages were the same or lower than a year ago, bucking the trend of mostly rising prices in 58 major North American business districts, according to a June survey by real estate firm Colliers International.

The survey suggests that thousands of O'ahu workers and their employers are not shelling out more to park compared with a year ago.

Estella Berg, controller for downtown architectural firm AM Partners Inc., said parking price softness was evident when the firm recently bought space in the Alakea Corporate Tower and sought to rent out four of its eight reserved stalls for $300 a month each.

"I had to go down to $225 to get people to take it," she said. "It was all the market could bear."

Colliers said reserved downtown parking stall prices in Honolulu ranged from $150 to $310. The median, a midpoint where half are priced higher and half lower, was $235, down from $250 a year ago.

Other downtown workers found it hard to believe that parking prices hadn't risen, especially given the state's strong economy, rising real estate prices and job growth. But the amount of available downtown office space has been flat at about 11 percent over the past 12 months, suggesting that parking demand has remained flat.

Prices for an unreserved stall ranged from $100 to $185 a month. The median was $160 a month, unchanged from a year ago.

Compared with other North American business districts, Honolulu's unreserved monthly parking rate ranked 17th most expensive, and was above the 58-market average of $152.

The most expensive monthly unreserved parking price median was $492 in midtown New York City. Pleasanton/Walnut Creek, Calif., had the least expensive at $35.

Downtown Honolulu's median daily rate was $30, also unchanged from a year ago. Few drivers, however, pay by the day. Only downtown and midtown New York City and Boston had median daily rates higher than Honolulu.

Mike Hamasu, research and consulting director for Honolulu-based Colliers Monroe Friedlander, which is affiliated with Colliers International, said he would expect local downtown parking rates to be on the rise as Hawai'i's growing economy produces more jobs and parking demand.

He said Colliers International's survey this year included more parking just outside downtown proper, like garages in Kaka'ako and Chinatown.

Over the past year, however, most of the job creation filled office space outside downtown Honolulu. At midyear, the proportion of vacant office space on O'ahu was 10 percent, down from 11 percent in mid-2004. But the downtown Honolulu vacancy rate has been steady at about 11 percent over the 12-month period.

The Colliers parking report said downtown Honolulu has fair availability of parking, with only 15 percent of garages reporting waiting lists for people wanting a stall. Last year, 75 percent of downtown Honolulu garages had a waiting list.

The annual report surveyed owners and operators of only covered or underground parking in prime central business districts, including 10 in Canada.