UbiPark and Liverpool Council provide smart parking solution

August 29, 2019

*This article first appeared in the Daily Telegraph, Wed 28th 2019.

Passcards and parking machines have become a thing of past at one Liverpool carpark, which is now completely powered by an app.

Smart parking has come to Liverpool with the introduction of a completely app-powered carpark, rendering passcards and parking machines redundant.

Liverpool Council and UbiPark, a smart parking app, have partnered to provide the digital solution, which aims to streamline the parking process at 33 Moore St.

UbiPark chief executive Mosstyn Howell said app-only parking would become the future of car parking in Australia.

“The digital access is currently available to Liverpool City Council staff, contractors, permanent monthly and University of Wollongong customers,” he said.

“We expect this model will quickly be rolled out once the full benefits of ‘windows-up’ parking are realised.”

To access the carpark using UbiPark, motorists must install the app and have it open to access the carpark.

Users can then open the barrier via the app, which requires Bluetooth and location services to be turned on, and proceed without having to turn down their windows.

The app also has the capability to automatically collect payment once the motorist leaves the carpark, with all transactions shown in a payment history.

“Not only does it make the experience more convenient and simple for motorists, but it is a much more cost-effective solution that brings the antiquated parking model into the twenty-first century,” Mr Howell said.

He said councils could reduce the cost of legacy machinery and maintenance, remove the need for unsustainable paper tickets or pass cards and reduce enforcement costs by using smartphone-based parking technology.

“As we transition to a connected future and smarter cities, these types of deployments will become more commonplace,” he said.

“It makes logical sense to digitally transform the parking experience and we expect many parking facilities will follow suit as they look to provide better transportation solutions to our citizens.”