Smart Parking

Sensor network delivering benefits to drivers and local authorities

Blue Mesh Solutions is in the process of launching Park Here Now, a unique and innovative IoT solution to the problems caused by parking in town centres and elsewhere.

Park Here Now is the Real Time Parking Availability solution, based on innovative IoT sensors and powered by Google Maps.

Parking issues cause significant negative impacts to the quality of life of drivers and people who live in congested and polluted areas.

Park Here Now reduces parking time and reduces the problems of congestion, pollution and stress associated with parking.

Indeed, it has been estimated that:

Road traffic is responsible for 30% of particulate emissions in European cities
Job growth slows when commuter congestion rises above 4.5 minutes
Air pollution costs the UK up to £20billion p.a. and is linked to as many as 36,000 deaths a year

Park Here Now uses sensors in individual parking bays that are connected in a mesh network and linked to the cloud via NB-Iot or 5G communications.

The result is that motorists are able to use an app to locate available bays quickly and easily, meaning less time spent causing congestion and pollution while searching for somewhere to park.

The technology involved is:

Bluetooth – IoT Mesh network at 2,400 MHz 5G connected via NB-IoT into Google Cloud
Google Serverless – ready for any data and solution
User-focused app built on Google Maps and hosted in Google Cloud
Google powered apps and user data tools globally available and applicable
50-75% cheaper than current IoT

Benefits are substantial and game-changing:

Average saving of four minutes engine running time per use
Increased parking density and revenues
Enhanced high street revenue through geo-marketing opportunities
Each sensor, used three times a day, saves 0.4 tonnes of CO2 per year, equal to £10,000 in carbon offset credits

Helping High Street Regeneration

Retail and service sector businesses can promote ‘offers’ via the smart parking app to drivers as they park. As the visitor pays for parking they receive a small, very local marketing notification.

Pilot Scheme:

Cambridge Science Park

Cambridge Science Park, the biggest of its kind in the UK, is operating a pilot scheme using Park Here Now for the 5,000 spaces on its site.

Many businesses at the park lose valuable time and money due to inefficient facilities there, while employees find it difficult to locate available spaces.

Meanwhile, as part of its sustainability strategy the park is committed to reducing the number of parking spaces at its site, with the overall aim of reducing congestion and pollution.

“If drivers know in advance that they are not guaranteed a space on a given day, they may choose to work from home, park off-site or travel by alternative means. The app will also enable us to monitor car park usage over time.”

Jeanette Walker, Director of the Cambridge Science Park

The Park Here Now app enables employees and visitors to pre-book parking spaces and find them when they arrive.

Jeanette Walker, Director of the Cambridge Science Park, said: “If drivers know in advance that they are not guaranteed a space on a given day, they may choose to work from home, park off site or travel by alternative means. The app will also enable us to monitor car park usage over time.”

Advantages over traditional ticket and ANPR schemes

There are several ways in which the Park Here Now app outstrips traditional parking solutions such as pay-and-display tickets and automatic number plate recognition devices:

It updates in real time so that you can see available spaces
It is connected to Google Maps
It is flexible; a local authority can control when parking spaces are shown as available, and can charge different rates for vehicles based on their CO2 rating
It engages and supports local businesses, who can offer marketing messages and offers directly through the app

A significant benefit of Park Here Now is that its wireless IoT mesh network can also be used by other devices such as air quality sensors and smart bins.

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We are always interested in speaking to potential partners who recognise the benefits of our state-of-the-art solutions. We look forward to hearing from you so that we can begin our conversation.

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