BPA leads the world with data standards to improve customer experience of parking

The British Parking Association (BPA) is leading a project to create and deliver new world-leading national parking data standards that will revolutionise the way drivers find, book and pay for parking, and increase accessibility to places including town centres and the high street.

Created by the Alliance for Parking Data Standards (APDS), which is jointly owned by the BPA, the International Parking & Mobility Institute (USA) and the European Parking Association, and funded by the Department for Transport, the standardised data model could lead to smarter, smoother and simpler payment systems and motoring services for parking right across the UK, Europe and beyond, transforming the way we drive and park, just as the Oyster card transformed the way we travel in London

Supporting the development of parking apps and smarter connected vehicles on our roads, data could identify available parking spaces, permitted times, and price - in simple formats that apps can use right across the UK. The ambition is for all parking data released by local councils and companies across the country to use the same language.

The development of the new parking language will also make it easier for local authorities and private companies to exchange data, ensuring cars of the future navigate both driver and passengers to an available space based on the price, quality of the space, safety of the space and availability of on-site services - including being near to electric charging points.

The new standard is a world-first for parking and will help streamline the parking experience, making it easier for drivers to find a suitable parking place and ultimately help free up much needed space, easing congested cities and boosting British high streets

Future of Mobility Minister, Michael Ellis, said:  “We are on the brink of a revolution for the future of transport, with ground-breaking technologies creating huge opportunities for cleaner, cheaper, safer and more reliable journeys. 

“We now need to ensure the infrastructure surrounding these technologies is in place and can accommodate these innovations. The new parking data standards will bring government, private organisations and technologies together to ensure a smoother parking experience for drivers.”

Nigel Williams, Chair of the BPA Board said: “The new standards will enable the next generation of apps and connected cars to find a parking space, park, and pay, with little or no intervention from the driver. The involvement of the BPA in APDS has ensured that the UK is at the forefront of innovation to improve the customer experience of parking”. 

Andrew Pester, BPA Chief Executive (& APDS Chief Operating Officer) said: “Our not-for-profit Association is at the forefront of raising standards and the creation of these new international data sharing standards are a direct result of our strategic collaboration with government, parking service providers, vehicle manufacturers and others to enable new innovations that will provide a cleaner, safer and smarter parking experience for everyone.”

A copy of the APDS standards documents can be obtained from the APDS website at: Alliance for Parking Data Standards.org