Clearview Intelligence - Smart Mobility Solutions

Case Studies

Parking Management System for NCP

Network Rail require train operators to monitor and report on car park usage, so c2c and NCP needed a reliable system that could count the number of vehicles entering and exiting the car parks and provide a management overview on space availability per site. Clearview Intelligence worked in partnership with NCP, ensuring that the solution would deliver the monitoring capability necessary to support both live and historical reporting of car park occupancy and real-time space availability.


Background

c2c is a train operator that runs services between Fenchurch Street and Shoeburyness, serving a total of 26 stations in East London and South Essex. 16 of these stations offer parking to passengers with 19 car parks between them, all of which are managed by National Car Parks Limited (NCP).
Network Rail require train operators to monitor and report on car park usage, so c2c and NCP needed a reliable system that could count the number of vehicles entering and exiting the car parks and provide a management overview on space availability per site.
NCP also wanted to use the data to feed c2c’s parking app, which provides commuters with live space availability across their car park network.
The unusual shape, configuration and non-uniform layout of the car parks has evolved over time along with the supporting infrastructure. This made finding the most suitable solution that could fit into the varying environments a particular challenge.

Solution

Clearview Intelligence worked in partnership with NCP throughout the project, ensuring that the solution would deliver the monitoring capability necessary to support both live and historical reporting of car park occupancy and real-time space availability. From the early investigation stage, including site surveys and risk assessments through to detailed site planning, there was an overriding impetus to ensure works were completed with zero impact to daily NCP operations for rail passengers.

The surveys indicated that monitoring of the traffic counts via Clearview’s Insight® Parking software using M680 loop counters on entry/exit points would be the most appropriate solution. These were installed with minimal disruption to commuters at the 19 c2c car parks.

The M680 counters supply the car park flow data to Insight, which allows NCP to conduct real-time and historical trend analysis of car park utilisation. At the same time, Insight provides a real-time feed of this data directly to NCP for use in the c2c mobile app for passengers.

This solution has brought much needed visibility to the station car park operations and will help to inform future investment decisions about additional parking provision. Enabling passengers to find out current parking availability prior to leaving home has meant they can effectively plan their journeys to and from the station, resulting in more efficient car park use.

Key Benefits

  • Increased operator visibility of car park space availability and location
  • Real time reporting of vehicle flows in car parks
  • Enables car park operators to take a more strategic approach to addressing peak period use, by providing an overview of how spaces are utilised, when the peak periods are, and where the parking ‘hotspots’ are
  • Commuters have real-time space availability information via a parking app

M680 Vehicle Count and Classification

Designed to meet the demands of traffic data collection projects in various locations, the M680 detects vehicles as they pass over inductive loops embedded in the road surface. With unsurpassed accuracy, reliability and versatility the M680 can be used in both slow and fast moving traffic environments, making it perfect for both parking and general traffic applications.

Insight Parking

An integrated solution designed to simplify the management, monitoring and analysis of parking assets. Combined with a range of sensors and signs, Insight Parking provides a complete solution for all types of parking operators and environments.