Automation has simplified a variety of tasks by streamlining the process, making management easier, and monitoring users with problematic habits. Parking control is no different.
Recent progress in technology is making the car park enforcement service easy to manage and taking charge of the repetitive tasks done by multiple attendants. One of these technologies is ANPR.
What is ANPR?
ANPR stands for Automatic Number Plate Recognition. It is a system that uses high-resolution ANPR cameras and software programs to read the number plates of vehicles getting in and out of the parking lot. It was initially created by local authorities to enforce parking rules and identify car owners who were breaking the law.
By monitoring entry and exit times, ANPR camera systems in UK car parks are able to determine things like motorists who have not paid for their parking or have parked over the maximum stay time. They can also determine whether there are enough parking spaces to allow new cars into the park to maximise efficiency for a better customer experience.
Technology is already sufficiently advanced to achieve over 95% accuracy when reading a car’s number plate.
There are also additional improvements in the technology. One offers intelligent matching of the vehicle registration number plate by the ANPR camera. It does this by offering possible number plates that were misread.
It combines the information about the vehicle registration plates with the make, model, and colour of the vehicle. This makes it easy for the parking operator to pinpoint the likely number plate. In most cases, this brings accuracy to about 98%. This makes it a popular approach to modern parking enforcement, especially since it works 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Uses of ANPR Systems in a Parking Bay
There are several ways ANPR Parking Enforcement can be used to enhance the management of parking bays and controlled land while reining in poor parking habits. Here are some of the popular uses:
Advanced Parking Management
An advanced ANPR car park solution can automate several parking functions, including issuing charge notices, monitoring parking spaces, and providing the management of those spaces with real-time data on the number of free spots available. The system can also be used to point motorists to empty parking bays so that they do not have to look for them.
This can be a time saver and a loyalty builder for most customers. In addition, the data can be analysed to determine the performance of the car park in terms of the number of cars parked. It can also be analysed to determine any other issues that affect the delivery of services.
It can be connected to the existing car park management system to ensure automated commands across both systems. This makes the initial system more versatile and adds new functionality while enabling easy enforcement of rules, such as the issuance of parking ticket charges by district enforcement officers.
Detect and Control Violations
The use of the ANPR enforcement system helps parking organisations determine and manage parking violations with ease. The ANPR camera technology can provide visibility on who is parking and how. Its advanced reporting capabilities assist with the following:
- Drivers that double park or park carelessly, monopolising valuable parking spaces
- Motorists who park in a disabled bar
- Motorists who park in the electric vehicle charging bays prevent access to the charging stations
Making Online and Automated Payments
Public and private parking companies can use pay and display machines to make automated payment applications by connecting the system to online payment methods or apps in car parks monitored by ANPR. The technology can compute the parking charges based on the time that the vehicle has been parked, calculated by monitoring the driver entering and leaving the car. The parking charge notice can also be sent to the app or payment gateway for the charge to be paid.
This is a ticketless payment method that allows users to pay the parking charge securely online or using their cards. It also deals with missed payments and complaints about payment computation. The staff manning the car park do have to handle cash.
Access Control
The system is easy to install and can be fitted in public or private car parks where you want to enforce parking restrictions as efficiently as possible. All you need is a WiFi internet connection. For example, if there is a reserved section of a public parking lot, you can use ANPR for barriers that identify vehicles and open when the ‘whitelisted’ ones come to park. Similarly, companies can use it to limit access to their own parking lots so that only their company’s vehicles can gain access to such bays.
ANPR technology can be used in any parking space, including retail parks, company parking bays, local authority parking spaces, and private landowners that offer such services. It is very versatile and convenient for both parking operators and customers alike. The British Parking Association gives the system a high rating for versatility.
Most ANPR parking services offer a robust client support business. Therefore, there are no long learning curves when implementing the system. Contact us for business inquiries or fill out the online form for more information on the system.
