Saturday, November 17, 2012
Story - SmarkIt Parking
I was recently driving into downtown Boston, specifically Post Office square, for a 1 hour meeting with the Verizon Outside Plant Engineering group. Since it was an 11am meeting, we would also be providing lunch for the group as well. Since I am a cost conscious employee, I drove around the financial district looking for a on-street parking space to avoid paying $20 for a parking garage spot for 2 hours. Being that Boston is an old city, navigating the myriad of one-way streets can be difficult looking for a on street parking spot that may or may not exist. Often drivers find themselves turned around and far from their intended destination without finding a parking spot. On this day, trying to find on street parking, I became this driver. I also found myself stuck in traffic because construction shut down a major cross-street. So to my dismay I ended up parking in the parking garage and being late to my meeting. Being a tech savvy sales professional I am able to check traffic, weather and get emails from my smart phone. However what I could not do was find or reserve inexpensive parking and be on time for my 2 hour meeting. What I needed was an easy way to find and reserve an on street parking space for my meeting. I could then take away the frustration of finding a meted parking spot and scrambling for change. The whole transaction could be handled through my SmarkIt app on my iPhone and I would have the assurance of having a parking spot for my meeting.
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Brett,
ReplyDeleteMy previous post alluded to parking lot owners, but my same points could also apply to city operated street parking as well.
With that said, this is a compelling story, because I could see myself in this situation and can really relate to it. I use my smartphone for EVERYTHING, so why shouldn't I be able to use it to help me find a parking space when I need it. I recently downloaded an app called TabbedOut which allows me to view my restaurant bill as I order the food, and pay the bill from my phone directly without ever having to handle money or a check with the wait staff. I rarely get to use it, because the restaurant needs the TabbedOut technology pre-installed, but when I do it’s an amazing convenience. I can see the same logic being applied to many markets, including city parking. Rather than search on my own, take care of the parking space in advance and go straight there.
As I’ve mentioned before, however, I do see some potentially very difficult obstacles that will need to be crossed before implementing this type of technology. Will this be applied to all streets or a few select ones? What will the less tech savvy person do to find a space? What will prevent someone else from taking a spot you reserved? These, and many other questions must be addressed prior to implementation, and it’s these types of difficult questions that need to be answered prior to any new infrastructure change. From a personal standpoint, however, I love the idea and can’t wait to use it.
Steve, very interesting restaurant app. I will look for it. All of the questions you posed are things we had to overcome. With most cities we will suggest and most will want to roll out the smart parking technology in phases starting with a couple of trial streets. There will be a sensor to detect when a car is present so there will be a process to tell a driver if their spot has been taken and they will be compensated and redirected to the next closest spot. The parking meter will have a visual indication if the spot is reserved and fines will be heavy for violaters. More too come...I don't want to steal the thunder from our presentation....
DeleteBrett, this is an real life problem commuting to Boston. I am happy that I can avoid the nerves by riding the commuter rail. I use the ParkMobile app to pay for my parking spot via my smartphone and I am well on my way. If I am in a rush I can always get to make a payment while on the train. For now I think ParkMobile target market are T and Commuter rail stations. Your idea might be an interesting IP to market to them especially as Boston city could really use one.
ReplyDeleteI really like your idea. I also agree with Carlton, but I think that the people that struggle the most are the ones that live far or simply out of Boston that are not very familiar with surroundings. They would benefit the most from your idea. Like me, I am always driving around forever because I missed the turn for the parking garage and the next street is a one way and by the time I finally park I'm in a bad mood, late, and the parking fee is just icing on the cake.
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