DESIGNA: Ticketless Parking Technology

In 2020, DESIGNA installed one of its first ticketless parking systems including license plate recognition in Bad Kreuznach, Germany.

How the ticketless parking system works:

At the entry barrier in the Jahnhalle parking lot, the license plate number and entry data are recorded by the existing camera system and the barrier opens automatically. Before leaving the parking lot, you pay the parking fee in cash or digitally at the pay station. Simply enter your license plate number on the touch display and the system calculates the payment amount based on the entry data and the valid tariff. After the payment process, you can leave the parking lot within a grace period. At the exit barrier, the license plate number is also checked and the barrier opens automatically.

After 21 months of operation, Stephan Butzbach, responsible mobility coordinator for the "Unternehmensgruppe Kreuznacher Stadtwerke" (Public Utilities Bad Kreuznach), provides crucial feedback on selected aspects of Ticketless parking:

• The Unternehmensgruppe Kreuznacher Stadtwerke is currently planning to install a "free/occupied" display in the next few weeks. Customers currently do not receive precise information whether the parking object is occupied.
• As ticketless parking facilities are still rare in Germany, especially short-term customers need to get familiar with the technology. Explanation of the parking process is necessary, otherwise complaints are possible. However, those who know how to use the system have no trouble using the parking facilities.
• Long-term / season parkers get familiar very quick and enjoy a smooth entry and exit. Ticketless is very popular amongst this customer groups which experience increased convenience.
• The size, placements and contents of displays, digital or printed, need careful consideration with increased attention towards the need of elderly customers.
• As the pay station is placed outside, reflections on the surfaces can pose a problem for the usability. The light conditions as well as the consideration of additional construction of walls or hoods to throw shade need to be considered.
• The Unternehemsgruppe Kreuznacher Stadtwerke was able to reduce maintenance and cleaning work as well as the consumption of paper (tickets, receipts) by operating the ticketless parking system.

About DESIGNA 

DESIGNA USA is a subsidiary of DESIGNA Verkehrsleittechnik GmbH, Kiel, Germany. The company’s visionary standards have led to the development of innovative products and solutions for the parking management sector for more than 65 years.