PLANNING AND LEADERSHIP FOR A BETTER WORLD
PLANNING AND LEADERSHIP FOR A BETTER WORLD Recently at Smarter Technology, we wrote about high-tech solutions for predicting traffic flow and reducing automobile congestion. While these services bring fewer cars to the busiest roads, other programs are helping to get cars off the roads altogether. New smart-parking tools are helping drivers find spots quickly—cutting down on traffic, preventing annoying searches and reducing pollution.
According to Streetline, a parking solutions company, “drivers searching for curb parking in just one 15-block district in Los Angeles over a period of one year drove for an extra 950,000 miles and produced 730 tons of carbon dioxide in the process.”
Streetline’s technology consists of on-road sensors and centralized servers that allow city managers to view parking violations. (source: Streetline)
Streetline’s parking system helps drivers find spots more quickly and city governments better enforce parking laws. Streetline’s technology consists of low-power mesh sensors that can be either embedded into or mounted onto a street surface. The sensors communicate wirelessly with centralized servers to provide information to drivers and city managers.
With their mobile phones, drivers can access Streetline’s free Parker app to see how many parking spaces are available on nearby streets. The app can help choose the best spot and even shows time limits and meter prices in advance.
The technology is already being used in Los Angeles, where the city saw a return on its investment in just three months. This month, the Parker app was brought to Fort Worth, Texas.
"Streetline's guided parking app 'Parker' is an invaluable service for visitors and residents to Fort Worth's Sundance Square," said Peter Elliott, Fort Worth parking manager. "We want to progressively minimize and eventually eliminate the hassle of finding parking, and advanced technologies like Streetline's are a key part of our ongoing efforts to understand the application of the latest parking technology to make Fort Worth one of the most livable cities in the nation."
The Parker App lets drivers view nearby vacant spots, meter prices, and time limits. It even chooses the optimal parking space. (source: Streetline)
Smart parking can also be an invaluable tool for city planners. Streetline’s system allows planners to set meter prices dynamically using accurate hourly data and more easily locate parking violations.
According to a recent study at UCLA, up to 74 percent of traffic in urban areas is caused by drivers looking for parking spaces. With smarter parking solutions, this kind of extreme congestion and the pollution it causes could be problems of the past.
#CloudForum 2012: “Spring Edition” on May 24 @ Utrecht, Netherlands. Don’t miss keynote of #IBM's Fiona Cullen http://t.co/yKHRMhTw [Dutch]Blog Post: #Cloud industrializes #ERP with IBM Lifecycle as a Service (LCaaS) for SAP Solution http://t.co/w0GoaY6z #thoughtsoncloudGood Morning Europe!That is it from Asia-Pacific! Over to #Europe!IBM Impact 2012 in June at multiple cities in #India >> Mumbai, Bangalore & Delhi. Details: http://t.co/rjnqO137 #IBMImpactCustomWare & Australia-based GLiNTECH collaborates to deliver IBM Cast Iron #cloud integration services http://t.co/Q2tEhdQN #ibmcloudBlog post: IBM discloses #SmartCloud advances & its rapid adoption http://t.co/xsl54fYx via @ToolsJournal #ibmcloudIBM's Vamsicharan Mudiam will keynote @cloudconnect_in on May 24 in Bengaluru, #India. View his profile: http://t.co/FwA5teCm #CloudConnectJapan-based Okasan Securities running on #ibmcloud adopts "bulletin board system for disaster recovery" http://t.co/aujlDcJo [Japanese]IBM builds smart tech center in Hainan, #China to develop cloud computing & the "Internet of Things" technologies http://t.co/lxtz3I2b
Like us on Facebook 
Follow us on Twitter 
Get the Smarter Tech Newsletter 
Register to view the archived "Data Center Optimization Techniques: Stop Wasting Time & Money" eSeminar
Register Now > 
