Ask almost any woman you know and she’ll likely have a dozen stories about feeling unsafe in a parking lot or garage. Multiple possible hiding spots and the constant flow of traffic create nearly unlimited opportunities to hide unwanted behavior from watchful eyes.
A young woman crosses a mall parking lot and nervously notices a group of men loitering inside a car. Worried that they are there with nefarious intent, she goes back to the mall and asks a couple to escort her to her car.
A young pregnant woman works from dusk until dawn in a downtown area. The parking garage she uses is dark, surrounded by vagrants and loiterers, and filled with potential hiding places for criminals. She worries for herself and her unborn child.
So, what can parking companies do to help all of their customers, not just women, be and feel safer?
Emerging technology can be used to keep customers safer than ever before. State of the art security allows issues to be addressed quickly, or prevented in the first place. With smart cameras augmented with AI and machine learning, security systems are now able to better distinguish customers from criminals. These cameras can cover every inch of ground in a parking facility all at once, eliminating hiding spots.
Many parking facilities now utilize remote monitoring systems, like Remote Guarding from Edgeworth Security (an industry-leading provider of security solutions), to speak directly to criminals and tell them to leave or face law enforcement, preventing loitering, vandalism, and other crimes around the facility. With Edgeworth, parking facilities can also include a service called “Remote Escort.” Upon request, customers can have a live monitoring agent remotely follow them to their destination.
All the women above said that they would have felt safer had the parking facility used something like Remote Guarding. Parking facilities with advanced security systems make guests feel more secure and, in turn, make them more likely to return. Everyone deserves to feel safe, and emerging technology can make it a reality.
Nick Waskiewicz is Regional Sales Manager for Edgeworth Security. He can be reached at nwaskiewcz@edgeworthsecurity.com
