Despite the deep changes in urban mobility over the last decade, private passenger cars remain the preferred transportation system in most European and American cities. Parking management is thus decisive for urban mobility planning, as it supports cities in tackling relevant issues such as congestion.
If available parking is distributed unevenly, the idle cruising looking for free spaces leads to additional traffic, noise and air pollution, as well as driver frustration and stress. Traffic analysts at INRIX calculated that in 2023 the typical US driver lost 42 hours in traffic (the equivalent of a full work week), with congestion costing the US more than US$70 billion per year. Last year in the UK, Londoners lost 99 hours sitting in congestion, three percent above pre-pandemic delays and two percent more than 2022.
Collecting and analysing parking data is the first step to enable the efficient allocation of existing parking spaces and any following urban mobility strategy. Smart Parking solutions based on ground sensors are one of the options specifically fitting off-street and on-street car parking, outdoor as well as indoor parking facilities.
Which features should be considered when designing a smart parking project and selecting ground sensors? Watch out these 3 key elements!
- Accuracy and reliability: Vehicle detection must be highly accurate to minimise false positives or negatives, ensuring real-time collection of reliable parking data. Our Smart Parking sensors grant up to 99.5 percent detection accuracy and unparalleled radio communication features to allow efficient wireless data transmission despite moving obstacles, changing weather conditions, and possible radio interferences. Hardware security module and strong data encryption features ensure data protection, safe storage, and trusted network communication.
- Total cost of ownership: Sensors should be quickly and easily installed above or below ground, requiring minimal road works. This is very important to save effort and money, but also to preserve kerbstones or cobbling in city centres. Battery life is critical: our devices grant 10-year autonomy to ensure the lowest and simplest possible maintenance. Sensors are robust enough to stand harsh weather conditions and sudden temperature variations, as well as mechanical constraints such as street cleaning or snow plowing.
- Scalability and integration: The parking sensor’s network must be open to start small and expand over time, adding spaces as needed. Our solution is ready to dialogue seamlessly with the existing city infrastructure, our Smart CMS or other data management platforms to provide a comprehensive view of parking status, and actionable insights about occupancy rates, turnover, duration of parking, peak usage times, and potential revenue optimisation. It can be easily integrated with mobile apps, variable message panels and traffic guidance systems to offer drivers valuable services such as real-time information about parking availability, online booking and payment services, parking coupons and valet services for shops and local businesses, and more.