New research shows that Australians are spending a lot of time and money in search of a parking space, and HERE Technologies believes that connected cars will help curb the problem.

A survey of more than 1000 people found that Australians spend, on average, 14 hours per year looking for that elusive perfect parking space. The numbers show that 18- to 24-year-old drivers take more time than any other age group - one in four people in this age group spend 30 minutes and over, per week, trying to find a spot.

Some 30 per cent of participants believe it has become increasingly difficult to find parking spaces in the past year, leading 24 per cent to choose alternative forms of transport, and 25 per cent to avoid driving at all. However, 4 per cent think parking access has improved.

While younger drivers are the pickiest with their parking spots, they're also the most likely to consider solutions like alternative transport, ride-sharing, or future technology.

More than half of all under-25s surveyed (56 per cent) want an app that directs them to available parking spaces, while almost one in three (31 per cent) want to use internet connected car features to help find free parks.