‘International Parking Community’
UK’s Second Parking Association
The UK’s Independent Parking Committee (IPC) was formed in 2013, by solicitors Will Hurley and John Davies, as an alternative accredited trade association (ATA) for the off-street parking industry. However, to take into account its international presence, the IPC changed its name earlier this year to the International Parking Community (trading under United Trade and Industry).
Until the IPC was formed, the only ATA operating in the UK was the British Parking Association (BPA). So operators now have a choice as to which ATA they wish to belong, to and the IPC now has 83 members.
To receive ATA status, just like the BPA, the IPC had to produce a Code of Practice, run an accredited operator program and have an independent appeals service (IAS). One main difference, however, is that any operator wishing to be a member of the IPC must complete a detailed audit of all their signage and documentation provided to motorists.
The IPC also believes that its IAS provides a far more efficient and cost effective way for the motorist to appeal against a parking charge notice (PCN). This is because the IAS appeals service uses an online portal that allows operators and motorists to appeal online.
Its IAS appeals are concluded within 15 working days from the operator and claimant uploading their evidence and relevant documentation. Complaints from motorists can also be lodged on the IAS website, which is monitored in order to deal with any rogue operators that do not work in line with the IPC’s code of practice.
In addition, the IPC is the first ATA to be accredited as an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) service provider. The IPC recognized the need to introduce ADR following the UK government’s decision to impose ADR for parking, which in turn would reduce the pressure on the courts in the litigation process.
The claimant has 365 days to appeal a parking charge notice under ADR, providing they use the operator’s appeals service in the first instance. Some claimants who pay the PCN in order to minimize the overall cost can now consider appealing to the operator using the ADR appeals service.
From a motorist’s perspective, the establishment of another ATA should make little difference, because all PCNs are subject to the same underlying laws and principles. However, motorists do need to ensure that they are appealing to the correct appeals service to avoid any unnecessary delays.
[Source: International Parking Community]
ABM Funds Ysleta Students Participation
In STEM Foundation Internship Program
The Ysleta Independent School District (YISD) in El Paso, TX, partnered with the El Paso STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Foundation to offer a paid internship program for students participating in the robotics, architecture and CSI forensic science summer camps.
Funds for the internships were provided through a $16,000 donation from ABM, a leading provider of facility services. Sixteen students from YISD participated in the program, which was held in June and July.
This is the first time that the district teamed with the foundation to offer a summer internship program. It began in early June with a “train the trainer” session for 16 high school students. Once they completed training to become a teacher for the camps, they began instructing YISD elementary students on object-oriented computer programming, architecture concepts, robot design and implementation, and crime scene investigation.
The six-week program was designed to give students the opportunity to acquire problem-solving abilities, independent thinking skills and learning to collaborate while having fun, building robots and watching their creations perform complex tasks.
ABM is working with the foundation on developing a long-term plan to offer students additional opportunities to participate in internships that provide real-world experience.
[Sources: ABM, STEM Foundation, Ysleta Independent School District]
Park Assist Names Sparrow
As Senior Account Manager
Jeff Sparrow has been appointed Senior Account Manager at Park Assist. He brings 21 years of experience in parking operations, technology and sales.
Most recently, Sparrow was VP of Sales at Scheidt & Bachmann, where he led Business Development and Marketing for the Parking Systems Division from 2004-2016.
At Park Assist, he will focus on ParkHQ, a parking portfolio technology product line that includes FlinQ, a command center integration platform, and ParkIQ, a business intelligence platform engineered to improve performance and profitability. “Jeff is an exciting addition to our team,” said CEO Gary Neff. “His extensive knowledge of the parking industry adds great value to our leadership team and ParkHQ product line. I’m enthusiastic about welcoming one of the industry’s strongest sales and account managers to Park Assist.”
From 2002 to 2004, Sparrow was Executive Director of the Baltimore City Parking Authority. Before that, he was a General Manager, Director of Operations and Project Manager for Central Parking System.
[Source: Park Assist]
PA City Is First in U.S. to Charge
For Parking Without Actual Meter
Neil Edwards, President of Pango, a FinTech company providing mobile payments for “smart cities” and transit, has announced the expansion of its pay for parking payment app into the City of Hazleton, PA.
The use of the app-driven payment system will be required to park on certain streets throughout the city and will replace the function of a typical parking meter.
“Up until [now], many cities across the country have been offering mobile payment for parking exclusively as a convenient alternative to traditional meter payment,” Edwards said. “Hazleton is the first city to offer the technology without the use of traditional parking meters also always being offered.
“[It is] setting a standard for other cities that may be looking to replace outdated meters or to add another source of revenue.”
“Hazleton is at the start of a trend we will start seeing in other communities around the country — that being the death of the parking meter,” Edwards added.
The Pango parking payment system is designed to replace the need for the city to conduct costly repairs on or the replacement of nearly a third of its meters.
“Hazleton is enthusiastic to add more advanced technology like Pango for city parking that will accommodate shoppers, employees and residents,” Mayor Jeff Cusat said. “Pango offers a convenient and easy way to monitor the parking without the city needing to make expensive purchases on new meters and maintenance.”
[Source: Pango U.S.A.]
SKIDATA, Inc. announces the acquisition of Protection Technologies, Inc. (PTI).
Hillsborough, NJ August 15th, 2016 SKIDATA, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of SKIDATA AG is pleased to announce the acquisition of its distributor, Protection Technologies, Inc. based in Bellevue, WA.
Founded in 1980, Protection Technologies, Inc. is a Northwest-based access control, closed circuit television, electrical vehicle charging and parking revenue control firm headquartered in Bellevue, Washington, providing service in Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. ProtectionTech is a distributor of the world’s leading parking access and revenue control (PARCS) equipment. ProtectionTech has earned a solid reputation for its work in designing access control, security systems and CCTV systems for major commercial development projects. SKIDATA Inc. will honor current customer sales and service agreements held by ProtectionTech. The leadership team of ProtectionTech will remain intact after the acquisition and SKIDATA, Inc. looks forward to welcoming ProtectionTech employees to the SKIDATA team, and to continue to provide dedicated concept-to-support solutions to optimize revenue for their customers.
Alexander Christl, President and CEO of SKIDATA, Inc. states: “PTI has been successfully distributing our products in multiple states for many years and we are glad that we could come to an agreement with the owners Wade Brossow and Steve Puckett to have their team integrated into our organization. This is a great addition that will enable us to serve even more customers directly and increase our footprint in the US market.”
“We could not be more excited to partner with and further impact the success of SKIDATA” says Wade Brossow, Principal of Protection Technologies Inc. “Our accomplishments have been largely attributed to the exceptional products and services that SKIDATA provides and we are very much looking forward to being part of this innovative and industry leading team.”
Baltimore Parking Agency Launches
ProjectSPACE 2 for Disabled Drivers
The Parking Authority of Baltimore City, in partnership with the Mayor’s Office on Disabilities, has launched Phase 2 of ProjectSPACE, the parking program aimed at combatting the abuse of disability placards and creating more accessible on-street parking options for people with disabilities.
Phase 2 went into effect in the city’s Fells Point and Harbor East neighborhoods, and just as in Phase 1 that launched in 2014, will require all people parking on-street to pay the parking meter, including vehicles displaying disability placards or tags.
“We spoke with several citizens, including one woman with a disability who had never been to Fells Point because she could never find a parking space close enough to her destination,” said Peter Little, Executive Director of the Mayor’s Commission on Disabilities. “With ProjectSPACE, she and many others will have a greater chance of finding an available parking space on-street.”
As part of ProjectSPACE, Phase 2 reserves about 70 on-street parking spaces for vehicles displaying disability placards or tags. Each is equipped with a single-space parking meter that meets the newest Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) guidelines.
Additionally, the access points of about 95 multi-space EZ Park meters throughout the two communities have been lowered to meet the most-current ADA standards, which allow people with disabilities to have accessible on-street parking anywhere within ProjectSPACE.
The cost to park using a disability placard or tags will be consistent with the cost to park without a disability placard or tags. All time limits for on-street parking spaces within ProjectSPACE will increase to four hours to give people with disabilities additional time to get to and from their destination.
“It’s perfectly reasonable that I should pay to park,” said Toni Kasko, a disability placard holder. “There should be equal access for everyone, and I should have to pay just like anyone else.”
Each phase of ProjectSPACE introduces highly accessible parking meters to a designated area of the city. The new single-space meters and retrofitted multi-space EZ Park meters utilize technology to make it easier for those with disabilities to use, unlike the city’s old crank-turn meters, which are deemed inaccessible by the ADA.[Sources: Parking Authority of Baltimore City, Mayor’s Office on Disabilities]
Parking Sense Lands Contract
For 21,000-Plus LA Metro Spaces
Parking Sense U.S.A. has won a major contract with the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA Metro) to supply parking guidance for more than 21,000 parking spaces.
Following a formal RFP process that included a substantial amount of due diligence, the Texas-based company was selected from the final three contenders, beating out strong competition from major rivals to secure one of the largest parking guidance contracts ever awarded in California. The multimillion-dollar deal also is one of the largest contracts of its kind ever awarded in the U.S.
Todd Wilson, President of Corporate Sales, commented: “We provided a winning combination of leading-edge technology, competitive pricing, and exciting innovations that LA Metro recognized as the most effective solution available.”
The company will be installing its EasyGuide parking guidance system across the county. The agreement will cover current free parking spaces and help provide a more efficient driving and parking experience.
“[Our] technology enables drivers to find their destinations and parking spaces more quickly, which is a major contributor to reduced emissions” CEO Jake Bezzant said.
Securing the LA Metro contract was an exciting victory, the company noted, adding that it follows a number of other wins, including with the CBRE Galleria in Dallas, the University of Washington and the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, MD.
The parent company, New Zealand-based Parking Sense Global, continues to grow throughout Europe, Asia, Africa and the South Pacific, the company said.
[Source: Parking Sense U.S.A.]
