The UK town that will be one of the pilot sites for autonomous vehicle testing later in the year, has deployed a ‘smart parking’ system as another pilot project. Milton Keynes Council has gone live with Smart Parking’s SmartPark system, with the aim of the trial being to highlight how the company’s technology can transform the parking experience for drivers in a key off-street parking location within the town. A total of 300 RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) equipped SmartEye vehicle detection sensors, linked via SmartLink data transmitters into the company’s SmartRep management application, have been installed at the B4-1 Car Park on South Second Street. The deployment enables car park users to enter the barrier-less car park, pay, and walk away, with no need to return to their vehicle to display a ticket.
The Milton Keynes deployment also includes the company’s SmartApp, a smartphone application for Apple and Android devices, which enables drivers to check the number of available spaces in their preferred location before they leave home. The company will also use its SmartRep software platform to provide trend analysis to the Council to maximize the effectiveness of management decisions and assist them in formulating long term transport strategies.
Councillor Mat Clifton, the Milton Keynes Council cabinet member responsible for economic growth and inward investment, said, “We are looking at a number of initiatives to make parking easier for people in Central Milton Keynes and the parking bay sensor pilot scheme is an example of this. We hope that this trial will show that by implementing new technology, finding a parking space will be easier for people visiting the town center.”Smart Parking CEO, Paul Gillespie, said, “This trial with Milton Keynes will highlight the value of our technology to councils operating off-street car parking. Our technology makes parking off-street easy and quick. We’re very happy to be working with Milton Keynes on this trial, and we are confident that drivers into the town center, who use this car park, will appreciate the difference.”
