11 Apr, 2017

City of Adelaide moves another step closer to smart parking

The City of Adelaide has today begun a tender process to seek proposals from experienced parking sensor technology providers to supply and implement smart parking technology in the city.

Smart parking technology will provide greater choices and improve customer service for city visitors and further reduce the need for, and number of, parking expiations.

The technology will include sensors along with an App that will provide the public with accurate real-time information about parking availability, allow users to pay for their car park, and enable city visitors to top-up their payment remotely to extend the time limit.

City of Adelaide Lord Mayor Martin Haese said smart parking technology aimed to make the city more welcoming.

“We want people to come into the city and enjoy their visit, and parking is often a concern for visitors.

“This technology will make it easier for people to find a park, pay for it, and avoid an expiation.

“So what this means is that you can find out where an available car park is before heading into the city, pay for it with your phone when you get there, and then get a reminder when the time limit is getting close to expiring. You can then choose to ‘top up’ your park and extend to the maximum time limit. You can do this from your smart phone, wherever you are in the city.

“With approximately 200,000 vehicles accessing the city every day, the experience of city users, as well as economic growth and business vitality, are important considerations. Efficient management of parking can better support all of these.

“The procurement of smart parking technology of this size is probably the largest of its kind in South Australia and should attract companies nationally and internationally. Not only will this technology put people first, it will also position Adelaide as a leading smart city.”

Council has previously done some parking trials using sensors to gain a better understanding of driver behaviour and investigate ways of improving customer service for on-street parking.

The successful tenderer is expected to deliver an integrated solution including parking sensors, a data platform, a Parking and Information Officer App and optionally, a Customer App. Approximately 2,800 sensors will be installed throughout the city.

The tender is open now until the 11 May and can be accessed via the SA Tenders website.

Paula Stevens