•  Advanced Parking systems
•  Parking Guidance Systems
• Basic of Parking Guidance Systems 
•  Benefits of APS/PGS 
•  Examples of PGS in Urban (or Downtown) Areas 
• In US
• In EUROPE
• In ASIA
• Guidance within Parking Lots
• Parking Information via Phone and Internet 
• Automated Parking Systems
• Advanced Payment Systems
• Advanced Parking Meters 
• References

Advanced Parking Systems obtain information about available parking spaces, process it and then present it to drivers by means of variable message signs (VMS). APS is used in two ways: to guide drivers in congested areas to the nearest parking facility with empty parking spaces and to guide drivers within parking facilities to empty spaces. Although the former function is more common, guidance systems within parking lots are becoming more common. This growing number of guidance systems addresses drivers' need for more information about the position and number of the spaces that are actually available within a parking structure. These systems reduce time and fuel otherwise wasted while searching for empty spaces and helps the car park operate more efficiently.

The need for APS is most prominent in highly dense areas, where the search for parking facilities congests and interrupts traffic flows. While European cities have shown the most interest in APS, having implemented it since the late 1970’s, American cities have only begun testing APS in the past decade. See our Telecommunications Diagram on Parking Management for more information.

Basics of Parking Guidance Systems 

These systems are based primarily on the use of message signs to give drivers information regarding parking availability. The availability of parking spaces in each facility is obtained from sensors that count the number of cars entering and exiting or, in other cases, by comparing the tickets issued at machines or cash registers to the capacity of the facility. This information is sent to a central or main computer that processes it, determining the locations of available parking. Availability is generally expressed in terms of "full" or "empty," but in some cases the actual number of spaces is given.

A problem with showing actual numbers is that when the number is small, drivers tend not to enter because they think that all of the spaces will be taken by cars already in the facility. This would not actually happen because the availability takes into account cars that have already entered the facility. The systems include VMS that show parking availability and nearest parking facilities. In some cases static signs guide drivers to the facilities. Other means of providing availability information are via roadside radio terminals, where small static VMS show the frequency at which it is being broadcast; by phone, where automated answering machines can give information on congestion and parking availability; via the Internet, where one of the main services is to provide information and parking reservations; and via in-vehicle navigation systems. 

Benefits of APS/PGS

• Reduction in time spent and fuel consumed while searching for available parking space.
• Reduction in congestion due to fewer cars driving around searching for spaces. 
• Elimination of queues entering parking facilities because drivers will not go to a facility where there is no available space. 
• Reduction in illegally parked vehicles. 
• Better distribution of flow and parking demand through the area.
• APS systems result in higher revenues and profitability for the parking facilities. 

Examples of PGS 

In US

St. Paul, MN
The system in St. Paul was designed to improve traffic and ease the search of parking in downtown. It interconnects 10 different parking facilities in the downtown area. A central computer system obtains information from each facility, processes it, and sends it to LED-based VMS.  It uses 56 signs to provide information on parking availability. From these, 46 are static signs, used as "wayfinders" to guide drivers to the facilities.

Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh has a "wayfinder" system that consists of a series of linked signs that guide drivers not only to parking facilities but also to special attractions in the area. This system divides Pittsburgh into five color-coded areas. Most of the signs are static, but some are dynamic, showing text like "open" or "full" to describe the status of the facility. 

In EUROPE

Across Europe

e-PARKING is a parking management system that relies upon mobile phone technology. It enables drivers to obtain early information on available parking spaces so that they can reserve spots at desired times. e-PARKING will also integrate the currently discrete parking administration systems (i.e. billing applications, parking site occupancy control systems, etc.) into a single platform.

The conveniences of e-PARKING will be achieved through a parking space optimization service (PSOS). The PSOS can:

• check the availability of parking spaces in a given area (i.e. county, city, etc.) or give the parking availability at a certain time of day;
• book a parking place in a given parking lot or area for a certain day/time;
• help drivers find parking lots (via cooperation with guidance systems); and
• interact with other electronic booking services to reserve parking spaces (i.e. near a cinema)

Click for more information on e-PARKING.

Bristol, UK.
The Bristol system guides drivers to empty spaces within parking structures. The system includes 3 multistory parking facilities, with a combined total of 2,645 spaces. Infrared vehicle sensors detect empty spaces, and this information is transmitted to a main computer that controls VMS, which in turn show the number of available spaces on each floor and guide drivers to them. The system software has the ability to learn from the data so that it can forecast at what times of day a particular facility will be full and accordingly divert drivers to other facilities.

Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Frankfurt was one of the first cities to have installed APS for parking management. In the late 1970’s they implemented the concept of guiding drivers to parking facilities. In 1992 they updated their system. It has three phases: first, guiding drivers to 1 of 5 areas; second, guiding them to a more specific sub-area; finally, guiding them to parking facilities. Guidance is provided by VMS, which display information provided by the parking facilities’ main computer. 

Ghent, Belgium
The parking guidance system in Ghent is divided into four parts: detection and local processing; central processing; control and checks; and dynamic signs and data transmission. Each facility has a reporting terminal that receives data from sensors and sends it to the central processing unit that processes the data and sends it to the display signs via phone line, cable network, TV signal or radio network. The Ghent systems uses the TV transport network to send the data, and connects car parks with the central processing unit. It also tests the connection and has to make simulation of everyday parking traffic, that is, it makes constant checks on the interconnections between car parks, a central processing unit and TV distribution network, so that if one fails, the program will provide information on parking status based on previous occasions. The signs used to show availability are mainly static with some dynamic. 

Koeln, Germany
Koeln has a Parking Guidance System as a component of its Urban Traffic Control System. It uses VMS on access roads to provide information on parking availability in park and ride lots.

In ASIA

Toyota, Japan
Advanced Parking Information Systems are used to maximize the utilization of parking facilities in this city is of 340,000. Information is provided in six ways: 

• Telephone information on traffic congestion, road restrictions and parking availability. 
• Using suburban VMS to guide drivers to the three most convenient parking facilities 
• By roadside radio 
• Downtown VMS guide drivers to the most accessible parking facility where space is available. They also offer en-route congestion. 
• Individual Guide Sign direct drivers to a named parking facility 
• Entrance signs at parking facilities

Yokohama, Japan
This dense city of 3 million has introduced a system that provides drivers with the current status on parking and guides them to parking facilities. It includes 16 parking lots with 4,400 parking spaces. 

This project was a joint effort by the government and private parking facility Operators. The system divides the city in four concentric zones. In the first zone, drivers enter the city and are notified of parking availability via detailed information on boards. When entering zone three, a board shows directions to parking facilities. Finally, a board at the entrance displays the name of facility and space availability. 

Congestion is a problem not only on urban streets, but also inside parking facilities. Therefore, some parking facilities use VMS to guide drivers to empty parking spaces. This requires sensors in each parking space to determine its occupancy status, communications to a central computer that determines how to guide drivers to empty spaces, and communications to the VMS.

Baltimore, MA
The “BWI Smart Park” system is an automated parking guidance system intended to make finding a parking space quick and hassle free at the Baltimore/Washington Airport (BWI Expansion). The system is currently available in all spaces in the new Daily A Garage and on Level 2 of the BWI Hourly Garage. Ultrasonic sensors mounted over each parking space monitor the vacancy status of each space and illuminated electronic “way-finding” signs, located at the ends of each parking row, display the number of spaces available in each row. Green arrows direct patrons to lanes with vacant spaces. Red Xs indicate lanes where no spaces are available. Blue lights direct disabled patrons to accessible parking areas. Once fully deployed, electronic signs at both the hourly and daily garage entrance plazas will reflect the status of vacant parking spaces on each level. Take a virtual tour of the Smart Park at BWI.

Humphrey Terminal Parking Ramp Phase I at the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport
Since August 2002, phase 1 of this parking facility has offered wayfinding signage and real-time parking status information to parking lot users. This facility uses overhead LED signs to inform drivers of which levels are available in the structure; the message "CLOSED" appears when a level is reaching capacity. Parking status is provided at two advanced locations and at the entrance to each parking choice. This parking facility also features pedestrian orientation and directions to crosswalks and elevators on each level, as well as memory retentive devices to help drivers remember where they parked (i.e. a sign might read "REMEMBER YOUR LEVEL: HUMPHREY RAMP/LEVEL 2").

Houston International Airport
This advanced parking facility has a computerized system that uses wires embedded in the garage floor to act as sensors when cars enter and exit each level. The data obtained is sent to a main computer, which analyzes it and calculates the number of spaces available. This system controls 19 entry gates and 22 exit gates. Large information boards at each entrance and red and green lights at each space indicate the availability of parking. 47 signs provide information regarding availability on each floor.

Toulouse, France
A new multistory parking garage was constructed at the Blagnac Airport near Toulouse, France. Ultrasonic sensors monitor individual parking spaces and indicate occupancy status via green (vacant space) or red (occupied space) lights. A system of LED signs placed at each junction in the garage flash arrows that indicate to drivers which way they should drive to find an empty space. The parking garage control center provides a visualization of the whole multistory car park and allows the control center to intervene in the parking space management. Vehicle count information is easily obtained (this includes the number of vehicles and the frequency of parking space occupancy.) A similar system is at work in Turkey at the TEPE NAUTILUS shopping mall in Istanbul.

Phone systems use automated answering machines to assist callers in locating available parking places. In this way, drivers can obtain information on parking availability and directions to parking facilities. Information on parking locations, costs, space reservation, and regulations can be obtained via the Internet.

Japan
Parking information has been available on the Internet in Japan since 1998 (click here for more information). Since December 2000, Internet-enabled mobile phones can also convey parking space information (click here for more information--in Japanese).

Automated Parking systems are designed to save space. These systems have mainly been used in Japan. Older systems operate with a rotating wheel with buckets that stores automobiles. These are mechanically simple but not as space efficient as newer systems where automobiles are stored and then moved in four axes (XYZ and rotation). 
 

              
Fig 1. Example of Automated Parking System (www.robopark.com)                

Fig 2. Example of rotation mechanism.

These systems have the added advantage of eliminating the need for the driver to maneuver into and out of a parking space.  

New Jersey, USA

A robotic parking system opened at the Hoboken Garden Street Garage in October 2002. This garage, designed for local residents, is seven stories high and accommodates 312 cars. When a driver enters that garage, a sensor detects their access card (similar to an automatic vehicle identification card) and signals to the computer that a driver is approaching. The driver proceeds into the open bay, gets out of their car, and pushes a button to instigate the automated parking process. Once the driver has left their vehicle, an integrated motion control system takes over, managing 35 independently operating robots that transport the vehicle from the entrance bay into an open parking space. Here is a detailed description of the automated parking process from Road Traffic Technology: Industry Projects:

The central computer system guides a carrier on steel rails along an open aisle-way to a position adjacent to the arrival station and the pallet. An additional rack entry module moves above the upper surface of the carrier and is inserted beneath the pallet; the pallet and the vehicle are then transferred to the carrier. Under the direction of the computer, the carrier (with the pallet and the vehicle inside) is moved from the arrival station to a multilevel lifting device; the pallet and the vehicle are then transferred to the lift. When the lift reaches the designated parking level, the pallet and the vehicle are transferred to another carrier. This carrier transports the pallet and the vehicle to the designated parking slot. Lastly, the pallet and the vehicle are transferred into the parking slot by the rack entry module. This system design enables multiple independent motions simultaneously thus dramatically increasing reliability and speed of transactions.

Click here for pictures of robotic parking in Hoboken.

Vancouver, British Columbia 
The system used in Vancouver is for a lot of 33 feet wide, which is not sufficient for underground parking. A north Vancouver firm designed and built an electro-mechanical, computer-controlled system. 

A description of the system by Douglas Yip (1996): 

This system has the following components: pallets and storage bays, lift, turntable, vehicle transport assembly, standby operation, electrical description, motion control, host computer, control logic and an operator interface. 
 

One of the major problems of cash-based parking payment systems has been the time spent in queues waiting to obtain a ticket or to pay a cashier. Queues can cause congestion in areas within and outside of parking facilities. Electronic payment can eliminate the need to stop when getting a ticket or paying. For a description of electronic payment and its different technologies, please go to the Fare Payment Technologies section of the site. Advanced fare payment systems are also used in advanced parking, and one of the most widely used technology is Radio Frequency Identification (RFID). 

The use of RFID or Transponders is surging throughout the world because they permit fast and easy access to parking facilities. RFID is a wireless process that recognizes an object by detecting and reading a unique radio-signal. The signal conveys information regarding the user; when it is within five feet of the entrance, the transponder emits a signal that the main computer then verifies. This system permits hands-free, nonstop parking access. People need not loose time searching for money or cards when paying.

One emerging parking payment technology falls under the rubric of m-commerce, which refers to the wireless payment of services (or products) like parking. An m-commerce parking lot allows drivers to use their mobile phones to wirelessly "deposit" money towards time in a parking space and remain updated via SMS messaging on the time remaining. Drivers usually have to register their license plate and credit card number in order to use the wireless metering. These virtual parking systems exist in various stages of development around the world but have made the most progress in Asia and Europe.

Mobile phones pay for parking in Singapore
Beginning in 2002, drivers in Singapore have been able to pay their parking lot fees using their mobile phones. This program was launched by Suntec City, one of the largest shopping malls in the city-state. To use their mobile phones as an electronic purse, drivers first register their credit card with Telemoney (a free service that allows users to pay wirelessly for certain products--including taxi fares). Before leaving Suntec City, drivers call Telemoney and enter their parking ticket number and Telemoney PIN into their phone to make the payment.

M-commerce applied to parking in Vienna, Austria
In January 2003, Vienna began experimenting with a wireless parking payment system called m-parking. Thus far it has been restricted to 1000 field test participants. Drivers register their mobile phone and license plate as well as their credit card details to sign up for a virtual parking ticket account. When they want to park, the customer sends an SMS (short message service) message with the license number of the car, the location code of the parking area, and the number of minutes they wish to park (i.e. 30, 60, or 90) to a designated number. The customer then receives a confirmation and the parking expiration time via text message. Ten minutes before the customer’s parking time is up, a reminder is sent to their phone, allowing them to return to their vehicle or pay again. The fee subsequently appears on the driver’s phone bill. More information m-parking.

M-commerce at parking meters in Melbourne, Australia
Beginning in September 2002, an Australian mobile phone company launched an m-commerce test project for parking meters in Melbourne and Sydney. In Melbourne, the test involves 12 multi-bay parking meters located on both sides of La Trobe Street between William Street and King Street and on the west side of William Street between La Trobe Street and A’Beckett Street. The meters are available in Sydney at Bronte Beach via Waverley Council. Drivers are able to use their cell phones to pay for parking spaces using qualified phones; they can also receive an SMS message in advance of the expiry time that alerts them that 10 minutes remain at their space. A study conducted in the spring of 2003 found mixed responses to the wireless parking meters. While many pilot test participants enjoyed the convenience of not having to worry about carrying correct change, some found the meters difficult to use. Twenty percent of people polled said they were unable to complete the transaction by phone, and others complained that the SMS messages were hard to read because of the small font size. Prospects are good for m-commerce applications like this one, but cell phone display technology might need to become more user-friendly before it is widely accepted. More information on paying for parking using m-commerce.

 

One way to increase public revenue from public parking spaces is by improving the way parking meters gather data. Improved parking meters have evolved that increase car park revenue as well as efficiency in service and operations. It provides parking meters with the capacity to provide real-time information. This information consist primarily of the status of parking spaces (it indicates which expired metered spaces have parked vehicles.) The technology consists of sensors located at meters that report on their condition (i.e. whether it is working or if it is expired). This information is processed by a microprocessor and then sent via an internal wireless modem to the server. This server then processes the information from all the parking meters and sends it to the public institution in charge of them. This system also provides verification of parking permits. For example, disabled people with special license plates can be automatically approved for parking in designated places.

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