A parking management system refers to the innovative
technologies providing solutions in the parking industry. The core idea behind
any parking management system is self-explanatory:
It’s a system that helps people, companies, and
organizations to manage their parking spaces.
Managing car parks isn’t an easy task for companies and
organizations because there are lots of moving parts including traffic and the
availability of spaces. It is a time-consuming task, requires human labor, and
is inefficient. Using a parking management system can help reduce a business’s
administrative overhead on parking and reduce the impact of their parking space
on their local community.
Hardware-based
management
For the past 50
years, most large car parks have been managed through hardware solutions. These
solutions include the parking cash machines that often sit beside street
parking, but we’ll focus on the barrier arms that block commercial and mall car
parks, spitting out tickets on the way in, and requiring payment or a paid
ticket on the way out.
In terms of those
main four elements…
Payments -
people pay at a machine for the length of their stay, either to open the
barrier arm as they leave, or at a paystation within the car park. Machines
generally take card payments, and sometimes also cash.
Monitoring -
because people need to pull a ticket to park, the hardware system automatically
tracks how many people are currently parking.
Access control -
barrier arms or gates effectively control car park access.
Reporting -
hardware solutions have backend reporting, which tracks occupancy and revenue
generation.
Hardware is
reliable at taking payments, monitoring, and providing access control. However,
it comes with high upfront costs, and the machines need to be maintained. This
is why companies are now opting for a third option...
Software
solutions
Expense is part of
the reason that people are turning to car park management software solutions.
However, software also promises a better experience for parkers, remote
monitoring, detailed reporting, and the flexibility to suit any car park -
public, workplace, tenant, visitor, and mixed-use.
Generally, parking
management software includes:
A user app, so
parkers can pay and book a park through their smartphone
A web panel where
administrators receive real-time information about what’s happening in the car
park
Integrations with
hardware like access control gates and EV chargers
