Digitalisation as a driving force in a parking economy for climate change

A review of the parking economy

During Sweco's webinar”Parking economy for climate change“a study on parking economy made by Sweco on behalf of the Stockholm City Environmental Administration was presented, with Svenska Bostäder's holdings in Grimsta and nearby condominiums as a case in point.

Anna Lindén, project manager at the Stockholm City Environmental Administration, explains:

'From the city, we wanted to understand how the availability and price of car parks governs people's travel choices. The study found that when the city offers free on-street parking, free long-term parking on designated areas, favourable prices for garages and low frequency of parking monitoring, we are making it easier and cheaper for people to own an increasingly ageing fleet of cars. In addition, it becomes clear that individuals who choose not to own a car are still involved in paying for other people's car ownership, via tax bill and rent. This knowledge helps us direct efforts to transition to clean, shared mobility where we get the most climate benefit.”

Mobility46 participated in the webinar which, among other things, explored the questions:

• Who actually pays for the parking? Do residents who don't own a car get to pay for other people's parking spaces through rent or as taxpayers?
• How to identify subsidies or discounts of parking spaces?
• Is it possible to live well and solve transport needs economically without owning a car?

Some of the results as presented from the study:

• A parking space in a garage under the house costs an average of 750,000 SEK to build.
• Cars in Grimsta are parked 98-99% of the time.
• There are big differences in the price of parking — free 24-hour parking competes with paid visitor parking and contract parking, which varies between 250-1200 SEK/month (1500 with charging).
• Cars of model years 1990-2013 have the worst road safety because they lack the active and passive safety found in modern cars
• They run with such a pattern (sometime per week or more rarely) that they can be switched to shared mobility services.

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Collaboration for co-use

Sweco presented a concrete action plan for Grimsta and several proposed solutions.

Jakob Hammarbäck, Business Developer Mobility at Sweco, explains:

“This was a very exciting project. To dive deep into all the data on what reality actually looks like. Then the discussions with Stockholm and other players about what we can do about it. Road safety and air quality was a system-level connection that was new to me. All these households that acquire a car because the various actors in society do not offer another sustainable solution. Time for courageous decisions.”

First you need to take control of the situation, coordinate parking and mobility and bring about cooperation between stakeholders in order to challenge parking standards. Only then will there be the conditions for effective co-utilisation of shared mobility.

Then you need to offer an alternative to the privately owned car. Implement mobility pools and other shared mobility solutions. Ensure that the solutions are cost-neutral and easy to use, so that they become an attractive option.

In addition, we need to minimize the amount of fossil cars. Launch a mobility project to urge people to sell the car and introduce a scrappage premium to get old and dangerous cars off the streets.

This is Sweco's proposal to be able to free up parking space for other areas, create safer and more sustainable urban life and make it possible to exchange cheaper, more efficient and environmentally friendly.

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Digitalization as a driving force

At Mobility46, we see digitalization as a prerequisite to be able to carry out such a transformation in an effective way. And here we can be involved and contribute. Digitalizing the management of parking will make it easier for property owners and operators to, among other things:

• Review and categorize their parking spaces.
• Structure up parking and maximize the utilization of the surface through controlled overcrowding.
• Enable optimal use of the parking space in the form of different rights of use for park drivers.
• Collect data that makes it easy to optimize utilization. The data can also be used as a basis for new establishment, to justify a lower p-number if necessary.
• Collaborate for the shared use of resources and correct, balanced pricing.
• Enable electric car pool integrations for a smoother user experience.

Are you a forward-thinking company that wants to promote sustainable mobility and at the same time secure a profitable parking business for the future? Contact us and we will help you get started on your digitalization and sustainability journey!