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Shawn Conrad, CAE conrad@parking-mobility.org

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Kim Fernandez fernandez@parking-mobility.org

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Rachel Yoka, CAPP, LEED AP BD+C, WELL AP yoka@parking-mobility.org

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Bill Smith, APR bsmith@smith-phillips.com

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Tina Altman taltman@parking-mobility.org

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For subscription changes, contact Tina Altman, taltman@parking-mobility.org or 888.IPMI.NOW. Parking & Mobility (ISSN 0896-2324 & USPS 001436) is published monthly by the International Parking & Mobility Institute. P.O. Box 3787 Fredericksburg, VA 22402 Phone: 888.IPMI.NOW Fax: 703.566.2267 Email: info@parking-mobility.org Website: parking-mobility.org Postmaster note: Send address label changes promptly to: Parking & Mobility P.O. Box 3787 Fredericksburg, VA 22402 Interactive electronic version of Parking & Mobility for members and subscribers only at parking-mobility. org/magazine. Periodical postage paid at Alexandria, Va., and additional mailing offices. Copyright © International Parking & Mobility Institute, 2020. Statements of fact and opinion expressed in articles contained if Parking & Mobility are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent an official expression of policy or opinion on the part of officers or the members of IPMI. Manuscripts, correspondence, articles, product releases, and all contributed materials are welcomed by Parking & Mobility; however, publication is subject to editing, if deemed necessary to conform to standards of publication. The subscription rate is included in IPMI annual dues. Subscription rate for non-members of IPMI is $120 per year (U.S. currency) in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. All other countries, $150. Back issues, $10. Parking & Mobility is printed on 10 percent recycled paper and on paper from trees grown specifically for that purpose.

Parking and New Mobility

By Jaime López de Aguilar

IWAS DELIGHTED TO BE NOMINATED to a seat on IPMI’s Board of Directors, and when my seat was confirmed, that feeling was transformed into honor and gratitude. IPMI is a great institution and has a great challenge ahead: to get the position our industry deserves in society.

Although it is an American institution and is largely comprised of American members and entities, IPMI has an international mission, and it is here that I can contribute with my knowledge and experience. My life has been linked to on-street parking for 34 years. During this time, my company has managed on-street parking services in more than 50 cities in Spain, Greece, Brazil, Costa Rica, and Canada. We have also participated in biddings for several cities in the U.S., Colombia, Peru, Chile, and Argentina. I am also honorary president of the Spanish Parking Association and a member of the Board of Directors of the European Parking Association. My vision is, therefore, quite global.

I believe the most important challenge we are facing worldwide is how parking fits into the so-called new mobility. We hear everywhere the idea of giving the streets back to the pedestrian, encouraging the use of more sustainable transport methods, or hindering the use of polluting vehicles.

It seems that these are not good news for our sector, but it is important to remember some facts.

In The Netherlands and Denmark, bicycles are mostly used for everyday journeys, but the number of vehicles per resident is higher than in the U.K., where cycling is not so widespread. In Spain, the percentage of public transport use is twice as high as in France, but the number of inhabitants per parking spot is much higher in France.

In other words, the demand for parking spaces depends on many factors. It is not possible to preview the effect of new mobility on people’s parking behavior. And this is why is more important than ever for our industry to be considered as a key player in the development of mobility.

Curbside management, dynamic pricing, dependent tariffs of vehicle environmental classification, complete sector digitalization, and the use of guidance apps to find available parking spaces are key tools to establishing our role in the future.

We are in living the first steps of the new mobility and I’m sure the parking industry will be an important part of its development. I look forward to working with our organizations around the world to make that so. ◆

JAIME LÓPEZ DE

AGUILAR is president of Grupo Setex, Madrid, Spain, and a member of IPMI’s Board of Directors. He can be reached at jlaguilar@setex.es.