Get My Parking, Author at Get My Parking

Some of the most impressive buildings I've seen have one thing in common. Parking wasn't part of the conversation until it was almost too late. By the time parking operators, mobility consultants, or technology providers get involved, many of the decisions that shape how a facility will function have already been made. Access points are set. Lane layouts are finalized. Infrastructure is in place. At that point, teams aren't designing the parking operation. They're working around it. More Spaces Won't Fix a Traffic Problem Parking planning often starts with a simple question. How many spaces do we need? It's an important question, but it's rarely the one that determines whether a facility succeeds. I've seen projects with plenty of available parking still create frustration because vehicles couldn't move through the site efficiently. Common issues include: Entry lanes that back up during peak periods Traffic spilling onto adjacent streets Confusing circulation patterns Exit queues that slow down departures Dead-end aisles that create unnecessary conflict points The best-performing facilities aren't always the ones with the most spaces. They're the ones that make arriving, parking, and leaving feel effortless. Once the Concrete Is Poured, Your Options Shrink Fast One phrase I hear far too often is, "We'll figure out the technology later." The problem is that today's parking systems rely on decisions made long before equipment ever arrives on site. By the time a parking technology partner is brought in, utility plans are finalized, structures are complete, and opportunities for optimization are limited. Modern parking environments require planning for: Network connectivity Power availability Camera locations Equipment mounting points Access control infrastructure Vehicle recognition systems When these requirements aren't considered early, teams often find themselves retrofitting solutions into spaces that were never designed to support them. A Gate Doesn't Automatically Create Security There's a growing assumption that automated access technology solves security challenges on its own. In reality, the technology is only as effective as the environment around it. Take vehicle recognition as an example. Successful deployments depend on details that are easy to overlook during planning, including: Lane geometry Vehicle spacing Camera positioning Gate placement Traffic flow patterns Something as simple as insufficient spacing between a gate and a vehicle can impact how reliably a license plate is captured. When that happens, vehicles back up, attendants get involved, and the lane operates far differently than intended. I've also seen projects where teams planned to identify vehicles only after they entered a restricted area. In some situations that may be acceptable. In others, it creates a gap between recognition and access control. The hardware matters. The strategy behind it matters even more. If People Have to Stop, You're Probably Creating Friction Think about how most people interact with technology today. They unlock their phones with their face. They board flights using digital credentials. They order food, hail rides, and make purchases from their phones in seconds. Yet many parking facilities still require visitors to stop, take a ticket, keep track of it, pay at a machine, and repeat the process on the way out. Visitors increasingly expect: Mobile payments QR-based access Digital permits Automated validations Touchless entry and exit Every additional step creates friction. Every unnecessary interaction slows down the experience. The best parking experience isn't memorable because it's impressive. It's memorable because nothing gets in the way. Your Parking Garage Knows More Than You Think Most owners know how much revenue their parking facility generates. Far fewer know what the data behind that revenue is telling them. Every facility is generating information about: Peak demand periods Visitor behavior Occupancy patterns Permit activity Revenue opportunities Operational bottlenecks Without visibility into those insights, owners are often making decisions based on assumptions rather than actual usage patterns. Parking is no longer just a place to store vehicles. It's a source of intelligence that can improve operations across an entire property. The Mobility Landscape Is Changing Faster Than Buildings Are Built Buildings are expected to last for decades. Transportation trends can change in just a few years. Projects being designed today are already preparing for: Increased EV charging demand Rideshare pickup and drop-off activity Micro-mobility solutions Delivery and logistics services Emerging access technologies The goal isn't to predict the future perfectly. It's to create enough flexibility to adapt as needs evolve. Facilities designed around adaptability will always outperform facilities designed around assumptions. Parking Deserves a Seat at the Design Table Parking influences convenience, security, accessibility, and first impressions. It affects nearly every visitor who interacts with a property, yet it's often treated as a secondary consideration during design. The most successful projects approach it differently. They bring parking into the conversation early, alongside architecture, infrastructure, and operations. Because some of the most important parking decisions are made long before the first vehicle arrives. And by then, changing them is a lot harder than getting them right the first time. Build a Parking Facility that Works from Day One If you're involved in designing, developing, or operating a property, parking deserves a place in the conversation from the start. The earlier it's considered, the easier it becomes to create an experience that is efficient, scalable, and ready for future mobility needs. At Get My Parking, my team and I help bring together everything needed for a modern parking operation, from AI-powered vehicle recognition and digital permits to mobile payments, access control, analytics, and parking management technology. If parking is part of your project, we'd love to explore how we can support it. Let's start the conversation. Reach out to the GMP team and me to explore what's possible for your property. Get in touch Author:Samantha TooleDirector of Sales, New Construction

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