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Parking in urban areas today is, to put it mildly, a headache. You circle a lot for minutes before you find a spot. Meanwhile, a line of frustrated drivers forms behind you. Once you’re in, the hunt for a safe spot resumes. Finally, when you’re all set to exit, you waste time fumbling for change.

A smart parking mobile app can put all of these issues to rest. They help drivers find parking spots, reserve parking spots and pay for them easily multiple payment modes.

How smart parking apps make parking easy?

Using smart parking applications can make your life easier in the following ways:

1. Park with ease – Smart parking apps show you the exact location of an available parking spot. Roaming around blocks to find a space is a thing of the past. Parking apps help you find a spot quickly, thus saving precious time every day
2. Multiple payment methods – Parking apps offer various methods of payment. Instead of digging around your car for a change, you get to choose how you would like to pay – credit cards, e-wallets, SMS or cash
3. Dynamic pricing – The parking application will add a price tag to the spot depending on its location and the time of day. For example, prices during late nights and dawn will be lower than the rush hours. This makes sure you find a spot when you need it the most (much like Uber’s surge pricing ensures you get a cab when you need one)
4. Reserve spots – With the help of a parking application on your smartphone, you can reserve parking spots before you arrive at the destination. When you’re in a rush and don’t have the time to track down a spot, reserve it earlier and drive straight to it
5. Track spots – The application provides a real-time array of available parking spots. You can choose the one closest to your destination and drive to them
6. Reduced traffic congestion – Traffic decreases when there are no wayward vehicles on the road looking for parking
7. Decreased pollution – No wandering around blocks translates to a reduction in harmful emissions. The environment needs all the mending it can get. Contribute towards saving the environment (and ultimately your city) by using a smart parking app

Challenges for cities to solve

While smart parking apps are definitely a boon for city parking, some challenges remain. For one, such apps cannot run without an internet connection. This means it leaves out the populace that doesn’t have access to smartphones or the internet. Thus, city governments have to first tackle this infrastructural challenge. Moreover, different cities have different layouts and needs. Modifying the parking application to serve the needs of every city, though necessary, is quite challenging.

Overall, smart parking applications solve a host of parking problems faced by citizens. In the near future, parking applications will be fully functional and smooth parking will be easy.