We have the technology

Innovative solutions that are helping highways authorities, car park operators, property owners and enforcement agencies were the focus of the second session. The technology session was chaired by Gavin Manger, business development UK at Egis.

Intelligent solutions

Parking is a sector that continually embraces new technology. Dean Fennell-Connell, sales director of Conduent Transportation, reflected on how traffic enforcement has been transformed using systems such as automatic number plate recognition (ANPR). Cameras are now being used to enforce bus lanes, clean air zones and car parks.

Now the world is starting to wake up to the benefits of artificial intelligence (AI), especially in terms of analysing data and understanding patterns of behaviour. However, the use of AI in traffic enforcement will be shaped by the need to follow protocols and regulations that address privacy concerns and other matters.

One platform, many roles

Traffic Regulation Orders (TROs) are the bedrock on which management of our streets is built. Dan Hubert, chief executive of AppyWay is an advocate of digital mapping as a means of creating accurate traffic regulation data that can be accessed in real-time by local authority parking and highways teams.

The AppyWay Parking Platform has been developed to help local authorities, parking operators and electric vehicle (EV) chargepoint operators gain digital control of their physical assets. It is a back office integration software that works for both on-street and off-street parking across the public and private sector. Its capabilities include: multi-vendor parking payments and reconciliation; EV charging software; insights dashboards showing historical and real-time occupancy from on or off-street parking; revenue insights and third party transaction reporting from mobiles and parking machines. Integration tools enable the pulling of third party data and the pushing of authoritative data into fleets, logistics and motorists.

Streamlining transfer of keeper liability

Traditionally, when a traffic or parking fine is issued against a rented or leased vehicle the ticket is sent by post to the leasing company, which then looks up the liable hirer’s details and sends the vehicle hirer’s name and address back to the ticket issuer. The ticket issuer then sends a new ticket to the hirer. The process takes weeks.

There is a better way, explained Richard Williams, co-founder and director of Transfer360, who has set up a system that automates the transfer of vehicle keeper liability. Transfer360 enables ticket issuers and notice processors to direct a PCN straight to a fleet operator at the first point of issue. The system allows parking companies using the DVLA’s Keeper of a Vehicle at the Date of an Event (KADOE) service to cut the time taken to assign a ticket to a driver. For fleet managers, Transfer360 is designed to reduce labour intensive administrative processes, as one enquiry replaces multiple transfer requests.