Title: Smart Parking Linked to Transit: Lessons Learned from the San Francisco Bay Area Field Test
Publication Information: Transportation Research Board (TRB), 2008
Report Number: UCD-ITS-RR-07-15
Author(s): Susan Shaheen and Charlene Kemmerer
Document Date: 11/15/07
Number of Pages: 18
Price: $5
Abstract:
Rising demand for parking at suburban transit stations, such as the
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) District in California, necessitates
strategies to manage traveler demand. To better manage parking supply,
researchers implemented a smart parking field test at the Rockridge
BART station from 2004 to 2006 to evaluate the effects of smart parking
technologies (changeable message signs (CMSs), Internet reservations
and billing, mobile phone and personal digital assistant
communications, and a wireless parking lot counting system) on transit
ridership and response to service pricing. Researchers employed expert
interviews, Internet surveys, focus groups, and parking reservation
data to conduct this analysis. Survey data indicated that the field
test increased BART trips and resulted in 9.7 fewer miles per
participant per month on average. Key lessons learned include that it
would have been beneficial to anticipate additional time for project
scoping and permitting, and fixed wayfinding signs were beneficial in
both directing vehicles from the highway to the smart parking lot and
addressing resident concerns about increased traffic. Additionally, the
majority of participants continued to use the service when fees were
implemented. However, the CMSs were not widely employed in users’
decision-making processes in this application. Finally, the wireless
counting system worked well, with the exception of the in-ground
sensors, which were prone to miscounts. This paper provides an overview
of the project and key literature, behavioral effects of the field
test, and lessons learned.
Keywords:
Smart parking, parking management, field test, institutional understanding, lessons learned