Plenty was happening in the world of parking during April, with new projects, products, partnerships, and appointments all hitting the headlines. Key topics and trends from the past month have included parking data, sustainability, customer service, parking enforcement, and parking apps. Read on to catch up with the highlights from April.
The Power of Parking Data
With just 80 million parking spaces available for more than 281 million vehicles, parking demand seriously outweighs supply in China. Automakers are under increasing pressure to make accurate parking information available from the car’s infotainment unit so that drivers can receive real-time availability as they approach their destination. Of course, this is only possible with accurate data, provided by a reliable and trustworthy source. Ground Truth Testing (GTT) in 10 major Chinese cities has identified Parkopedia as the most complete and accurate provider of static information for both on-street and off-street parking data.
Meanwhile, DCX Innovations and Berlin are busy mapping parking spaces and performing a parking data analysis to investigate utilization rates and usage behavior. Four vehicles equipped with high-resolution cameras, laser-based LiDAR scanners, and GPS antennas will patrol the area within the “S-Bahn Ring” to determine whether unoccupied spaces can be repurposed, monitor the impact of parking space management on traffic, and measure the volume of parking search traffic.
Parking - a Sustainable Industry?
When it comes to transforming cities into sustainable ecosystems, parking can play a starring role. From reducing traffic and strengthening EV infrastructure to adopting green construction and supporting last-mile solutions, parking can help cities on the path to climate neutrality.
In recognition of the industry’s responsibility for creating a sustainable future APCOA has launched “APCOA Sustainability in Action”, an ESG program dedicated to consolidating their green activities. As part of the program, APCOA’s car fleet will become entirely EV and tens of thousands of EV charging points will be added to their car parks over the new few years.
The Way to a Parker’s Heart
A positive experience is essential to encouraging drivers to return to a parking facility, and rewards and discounts can be a real incentive for repeat visits. Get My Parking’s consumer app, powered by their smart parking management system, can offer numerous discounts, including a number of minutes free of cost. Discounts can also be tailored to specific user groups and user IDs, helping facility managers to incentivize and reward a targeted audience.
Going above and beyond is another way to excel at customer service as ParkVia and DragonPass have proven with their partnership. Together they combine airport parking reservations with a range of auxiliary travel products and services, including lounge access, security fast track, and meet and greet, helping customers streamline their journey through the airport.
Trending – Parking Enforcement
A survey conducted by Passport of more than 8,000 parking officials across the United States has revealed the latest trends in parking enforcement. Valuable insights from the 24-page report include:
- 57 percent of parking administrators digitally enforce their curbs
- 46 percent of respondents take less than one minute to issue a citation
- Nearly 78 percent of respondents employ between 1-10 dedicated enforcement officers
- 70 percent of respondents prioritize license plate recognition as an integration to their enforcement solution.
Apps Still Proving Popular
Lately, it seems that app-free contactless payment options have been taking the spotlight, with many parking providers keen to eliminate registration or unnecessary downloads from the payment process. However, as meterUP, Philadelphia’s ParkMobile-powered parking app reaches 1 million downloads and 17 million transactions, it seems that drivers still find parking apps a convenient way to pay for their parking.
Supporting the Various Verticals of the Parking Industry
With parking fulfilling such a basic need in modern life it is hardly surprising that there are many user groups with different requirements. For mobile parking payments provider, PayByPhone, a new global leadership structure is helping them better serve the differing needs of three key verticals: clients, such as cities, universities, and parking operators; corporate, including fleets and businesses; and the end consumers, drivers who use their services.
Introducing…
Rajesh Prabhu joins Get My Parking as CTO, bringing with him his passion for solving problems with well-engineered solutions.
NMI has appointed Peter Galvin as Chief Marketing Officer who brings with him more than 20 years of experience in growing and leading businesses in enterprise software and SaaS.
