Using Smart Parking to Address Parking Violations
Parking presents many challenges for US residents. Despite the many parking spaces constructed within most US cities, some find it difficult to locate ample slots to park their vehicle. As such, some people turn to curb-side parking or leave their cars in non-parking areas due to a lack of space. According to research from UCLA, parking violations are common, but violators are not often caught, since the implementation of parking rules is not regulated consistently.
The lack of proper enforcement of parking regulations presents significant challenges for many parking lot operators and owners, who are often left to deal with the inconveniences left by irresponsible car owners. Fortunately, smart technology is helping address these parking issues through the use of different kinds of devices and programs. Here are a few ways smart tech is changing the game for parking violations.
Smart plate-reading systems
For major cities in the US, parking violations often come at the expense of bikers, pedestrians, and those who use public transportation. To combat this, major cities like Chicago plan to implement the Smart Streets Pilots Ordinance. This would use cameras attached to the front of city buses to catch parking and traffic violators in real-time. The next phase of the ordinance will use smart tech to create license plate reading tools that automatically recognize which cars are violating parking rules and issue penalties accordingly.
Through this ordinance, the city of Chicago plans to automate the process of penalizing car owners and mailing the ticket straight to their home address for a more seamless process. That way, fewer offenders fall through the cracks.
In line with this, the city of Alameda in California also uses similar plate reading technology to enforce its parking and traffic rules. Besides being able to recognize plate numbers, it can also indicate if a car has been reported as stolen or if it’s been flagged by the police for investigation. Their technology can produce GPS coordinates to better assist city staff in tracking violators when it comes to parking. In the UK, the same technology is called Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) and is even utilized in many parking garages to mitigate illegal activity.
Wearable smart tech
Since wearable smart tech became more accessible, there have been initiatives that used Google Glass to help police officers catch traffic violators. Such was the case with Dubai police in 2016, who were equipped with smart glasses that could scan vehicle plate numbers and gather information in real time.
With the latest developments in smart tech, wearable accessories used by regular civilians can also be used to help track parking violators and provide more convenience for car owners. Take the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, which have cameras that can take 12MP photos and 1080p videos from a unique first-person perspective. These smart glasses are integrated with the latest artificial intelligence (AI) technology that can help record and share the erring vehicle’s information with the necessary law enforcement through a few simple commands. Since the latest generation of smart glasses also responds to voice commands, this allows hands-free mobility even when reporting parking transgressions.
Similarly, accessories like the Apple Watch have a built-in GPS and their own AI assistant to help car owners find proper parking spaces. They won’t need to take out their phone, which can be dangerous while driving—they simply need to dictate location instructions to the watch. This can help avoid parking violations and make it easier to look for the proper space to leave their vehicle in.
Parking enforcement app
As many cities deal with improper implementation of parking laws, some are turning to smartphone apps to improve enforcement. Some municipalities in New Jersey, including Stone Harbor, North Wildwood, and Ocean City, use an app that streamlines finding parking spaces and paying fees.
In line with this, developers are now coming out with improved smartphone apps that property owners or managers can use to address violations by themselves. The Enforcer app was developed with effective property enforcement in mind. It essentially automates the process of catching vehicles that are violating parking rules, as the app can recognize if a parked car is owned by a tenant in the building or a non-resident violating parking rules in the area.
In addition to this, a parking enforcement app requires no-contact apprehension and can easily send tickets to violators when their unauthorized car is parked in a reserved spot. This streamlines the process, as there is no need for a traffic enforcer to create a ticket and fine a violator.
Article written exclusively for parqex.com
Author: Rosetta Jolene
