With an all-electric shuttle fleet at Los Angeles International Airport since 2016, EV charging spaces nationwide, and ticketless parking – the L&R Group is leading the charge for sustainable operations.
Since 1992, the L&R Group of Companies has owned and operated convenient, high-quality yet affordable parking facilities in the Los Angeles area serving LAX. Since then, they’ve grown nationwide with their WallyPark brand of off-airport parking locations. With this growth comes an ongoing commitment to sustainability – including the implementation of electric shuttles, EV charging stations, ticketless parking – and future plans for solar-powered facilities to enable net-zero energy consumption in their parking structures.
When it comes to parking in the Los Angeles area, the L&R Group are arguably the category leader. L&R brands include 100+ Joe’s Auto Parks locations, and three off-airport parking brands at LAX including WallyPark (two locations), Joe’s Airport Parking and Airport Center Parking. WallyPark is the largest off-airport brand at LAX – only second to the actual airport – offering 6,400 spaces for LAX travelers.
When LAX released its environmental impact reports and started implementing compliance regulations to decrease carbon emissions, the L&R Group of Companies made the commitment to be first to deploy a ZERO EMMISION shuttle bus – while others were focused on alternative/cleaner burning fossil fuels. In 2016, all of L&R’s LAX parking brands switched to electric shuttles.
Currently, there are more than 30 all-electric shuttles running between L&R’s parking facilities and the LAX airport terminals, supporting thousands of LAX customers each day. The 100 percent electric shuttle fleets are powered by 20 level-three chargers owned by L&R. In the seven years since implementing their all-electric fleet of shuttles at LAX, it is estimated that L&R has removed substantial amounts of carbon dioxide emissions from the atmosphere. L&R’s expansion of EV shuttle fleets will continue until their entire shuttle infrastructure is eco-friendly electric.
In addition to electric shuttles, the brands supply more than 200 EV charging stations for their eco-friendly customers to use when parking at LAX, so travelers can fly home to a full charge (and avoid “range anxiety”). In the United States, the number of registered EVs has been increasing, with over 1.8 million EVs registered as of 2021, up from just over 500,000 in 2016. The L&R Group is steadily investing in charging infrastructure at all their facilities – and as of today, provides EV stalls across its locations nationwide.
L&R’s commitment to sustainability starts at the top. At the National Parking Association’s Winter Leadership Forum, I presented on WallyPark’s commitment to sustainability since 2016 – touting a combination of over 200 L2 and L3 EV chargers installed within their footprint of 6,400 parking stalls in a one-mile radius – just blocks from LAX.
During my presentation, I reiterated the role of sustainability in parking operations in protecting our environment, improving reputation and brand among customers, increased cost savings in operations, ensuring long term viability, and attracting the best workers.
The commitment goes beyond just electric shuttles and EV charging. L&R is constantly looking at areas in its operations to contribute to sustainability.
• In 2018, an iPhone and Android mobile app was developed and launched for WallyPark to promote contactless parking and ease of ingress and egress with prepaid reservations.
• In 2020, L&R made the decision to upgrade its parking equipment to allow for ticketless parking – eliminating the need for costly paper tickets and the trash generated by their use.
• Currently, the company is working to digitize all forms and eliminate the need for paper documents in its operations.
Looking forward, the L&R Group is experimenting with net-zero solar panel programs with the goal of achieving net-zero energy consumption. With net-zero energy consumption, buildings generate as much energy as they use, resulting in a net zero energy balance.
About the L&R Group: The L&R Group of Companies are owners and operators of hundreds of parking facilities serving airports and municipalities nationwide. L&R’s mission is to provide the traveling public with unrivaled hospitality, parking, and transportation services; all while creating a workplace that attracts the best workers by creating a work environment that fosters a positive company culture and emphasizes employee well-being, growth, and engagement.
Charles Bassett is President of Operations, L&R Group of Companies. He can be reached at cbassett@tlrgc.com
