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Impact of COVID-19 on city parking businesses

  • Things To Know
  • Xavier Sabastian
  • 5 minutes

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Across the country, parking lots—once bustling with shoppers, employees, and cars inexplicably parked in a diagonal—have become ghost towns. With companies shut down and many people working from home, the demand for parking has fallen since mid-March 2020. This downturn has impacted every segment of the industry, from airport lots to privately owned residential areas. But even in good times, the industry was fraught with inefficiencies. Vacant and underused parking spaces have been prevalent during the pre-Covid-19 era. With many across America feeling particularly barren, some entrepreneurs are taking advantage of this moment to reconfigure the market—and, in some instances, to build entirely new use cases for giant pavement grids.

Impact of COVID-19 on city parking businesses

Parking companies would also need to concentrate on implementing such contactless solutions that are more straightforward, more effective, and safer than conventional parking practices. While smart parking, the underlying technology for ‘contactless’ parking, has been around for some time now, its adoption is still at an early stage globally.

COVID-19 era has impacted city parking

A new normal for parking

A ‘touchless’ parking experience is set to become a new standard for both on-street and off-street parking in the post-COVID world. A long time before the pandemic occurred, cities in the US were already preparing to set up fully contactless parking in motion. Some now have completely contactless pay-and-display payment systems that support debit and credit cards and mobile payments. Parking companies that have not yet implemented revolutionary parking technologies will be quick to do so now and for a good cause. Contactless parking experience ensures that customers enter the facility without exchanging tickets with a staff member, do not wait for payment in long queues, and use a contactless bank card or mobile at the payment terminal. 

In such a completely automated system, the patrons do not come into direct contact with the parking staff or with each other as they pass rapidly through various contact points in the building. This also helps car park managers who can remotely track and analyze parking and payment data without entering the facility physically.

Impact of COVID-19 on city parking businesses

How can I make it easier to find a parking space?

As more people own cars, parking spaces vanish much faster than average. This can make even simple situations like going to the store a challenging operation. The extension of outdoor dining to comply with the COVID-19 regulations has also had an impact. More precisely, this factor alone has resulted in the loss of thousands of parking spaces.

COVID--19 city parking
A full parking slot

While it may seem challenging to find a parking space, say, in a city like New York, there are steps you can take to help you do that. Bear in mind, however, that during your quest, you will need to be extra careful.

Let’s discuss some of the choices.

Check sooner than you usually

The best advice is to search your parking spot long before you need it. It’s always been hard to get to the park 10 or 15 minutes before your dinner bookings and still do it on time. As a result, it is strongly recommended that you look for a spot for at least an hour or two before deciding to park there. While this can come with many hassles, many citizens would prefer to spend more time in the city than to contend with the dangers of using public transport. And once you find the place to pick, paying for parking couldn’t be easier. 

All you need to do is open your Way.com app on your cell phone or visit way.com to book your place.

Book a spot in advance 

The ability to reserve a parking space is beneficial in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. You can use your Way.com mobile app to search open parking spaces and reserve a spot for a specific time. Everything you need to do is check the available parking options for that timeframe and then pay online. After that, you can arrive at your reserved place at the beginning of your reservation.

As the clock starts ticking as soon as your reserved time starts, it’s best to give yourself plenty of time to get there. Since the rise in car ownership has also adversely affected traffic, you will need to ensure that you can take advantage of your paid duration. It is also necessary to drive your car as soon as your reservation is over, as you will be considered illegally parking even one minute after your reservation is over.

Be prepared to park in other areas

Often, you’re not going to be able to find a spot in the place you’re searching for, no matter what you do. But that doesn’t mean all hope is lost. If you’re able to park in unconventional areas, you can always navigate the city efficiently. This can include neighborhoods, public parks, etc. It would help if you also were wary of any parking signs, particularly those that suggest particular parking spots. The last thing you want to do is park your car in the neighborhood’s residential area and stop anyone from parking in front of their house. The new parking situation could seem complicated. But it doesn’t have to be that way. The above info will ensure that you are in a position to handle parking as seamlessly as possible.

 

To make matters worse, certain areas have also implemented additional ‘no standing at any time’ laws in some areas. This ensures that some areas of specific streets must remain open at all times, further influencing the overall number of parking spaces available. Simply put, the scarcity of available parking has been a big challenge that most car owners in the United States have been struggling to resolve.

Impact of COVID-19 on city parking businesses


Still can’t find what you’re looking for? Make an online booking now or reserve your parking spot through our iOS or Android apps!


 

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