FP: This conjures up the idea of IoT, or the “Internet of Things”—how you’re connecting different technologies to make it easier for the customer. Are there any conversations or thoughts you’ve had regarding IoT applications in parking?
AJ: We’re in discussions with different city departments, and I talk to people all around the country about how we can connect everything together. One of the biggest challenges we’ve had here, pre-pandemic, was traffic congestion at rush hour in the evenings and also during special events. One technology that’s come a long way and is starting to expand is communicating parking garage occupancy and egress rates with traffic engineering or traffic lights to adjust automatically based on traffic flow. This will grow in importance and be very beneficial.
FP: Based on your experience with the concept of IoT parking systems, what should parking leaders be thinking about to capitalize on current situations and prepare for the future of parking?
AJ: We’ve been looking at getting back to ease of transactions—whether it’s touchless or mobile. We’re also accepting reservations. Then, we’re looking at partnership opportunities, [such as] if you purchase parking at a certain location, it can be an opportunity to market another establishment. We’re also looking at loyalty programs. These are examples of what can be a main part of our strategy moving forward.
FP: This year, the first of 15 interactive kiosks were installed in the Downtown Tempe area. What benefits does something like this give to a city along with integrations with parking?
AJ: With those kiosks, named IKEs, you can do many things. Instead of having to look at a [separate] map, you can: look up any business that’s downtown, navigate, look at a menu and place an order, check in with social media, and get your picture taken. You can even look at local job boards and apply for a job right there.
It also connects to our parking opportunities. You can look up available parking and purchase it online. Whether it’s someone coming downtown to park or if it’s just someone enjoying downtown or taking public transportation, we want to make it at their fingertips and accessible.
FP: It seems that parking businesses might have a new understanding of consumer activities or habits with the kiosks as well.
AJ: Exactly. Right now, we do physical counts at every major intersection with pedestrians and vehicles. That helps businesses by knowing what the pedestrian load is on a corner at any given time. From a parking standpoint, if we can tie that usage and availability to a wayfinding app, that’s going to help people get to available parking quicker.
FP: There’s a new community dubbed “Culdesac Tempe,” an upcoming Phoenix suburb that will ban cars on site. Is there an opportunity that exists there for parking companies?
AJ: Culdesac Tempe is not in the immediate downtown area, but it is very close to a light rail stop. There will be some parking on site that will be for visitors or retail components. There might be opportunities around to have areas where you can have short-term leasing or renting where parking companies might offer this type of service. The project is catering to a particular group of people that crave a lifestyle where everything that they need is either in their community or just a light rail train ride away.