Contipark tests new parking system in Giessen

Parking has become increasingly digital in recent years. Contipark is a major driver of this trend, for example with the digital parking service of the P Card or its online shop for parking at www.mein-contipark.de. The company is now testing a further expansion stage of digital parking at a new location in Giessen, central Hessen.

For this purpose, Contipark is now using a license plate recognition-based ticketless system for the first time in the “Lahnstraße” multi-storey car park at Gießen railway station. Cameras belonging to the multi-storey car park technology record the license plates of the entering and leaving cars via infrared. Drivers no longer have to draw a ticket at the entrance and can therefore pass through more quickly. When a customer wants to drive out again, he enters his license plate at the automatic pay station. The central computer of the car park compares this with the available data records, and the pay machine then displays the amount due. The customer can pay this conveniently in cash or by EC or credit card.

If the customer then wants to leave the car park, a camera recognizes his license plate and the system checks whether the parking fee has been paid. If this is the case, the barrier opens and the customer can exit. The customer’s data record is then automatically deleted.

Although the system also makes it possible to completely dispense with a barrier system, Contipark deliberately opted for a barrier for the first test. The main reason for this is the capacity utilization control. If almost all parking spaces are occupied, the entrance barrier closes and only opens for long-term parkers, for whom a certain parking space quota is always available. If enough capacities are available, the entrance barrier is permanently open.

Based on the positive experience to date, Contipark is currently investigating the use of the ticketless system at other locations.