ParkMagic, the Irish company developing mobile phone-based payment systems is rolling out a new parking payment system which uses number plate recognition technology. It is the first time this technology has been used for parking payment in Ireland.
Limerick-based ParkMagic has teamed up with Euro Car Parks to operate the new parking payment system in the Steamboat Quay Multi-Storey Car Park in Limerick City. This will be followed by a rollout to ten more barrier controlled car parks around the country over the next year. The new system will enable customers to park in barrier controlled car parks as well as on the street.
Number plate recognition means ParkMagic customers will no longer have to make that awkward manoeuvre to pull tickets out when driving through a barrier. As with the on-street services offered by ParkMagic, the new system also removes the need for cash and the inconvenience and time it takes to queue to pay.
To use this service, customers need to register their licence plate with ParkMagic. A camera on the entry and exit lanes of the car park will read a customers’ car registration plate, recognise them as a ParkMagic customer and lift the barriers automatically. The hourly charge will be deducted from the customer’s ParkMagic account. Customers can print off statements online which will allow them to track usage and business users will be able to bill the cost of their parking to their expense accounts.
“ParkMagic is aiming to operate in 10 further barrier controlled car parks within a year, yielding revenue of approximately €460,000 for the company,” said Brian Geoghegan, ParkMagic chairman.
ParkMagic founder and Chief Technical Officer Philip Hayes said: “This joint venture with Euro Car Parks demonstrates the exciting new possibilities which our parking technology can bring to the market. We are committed to offering convenience and simplicity in terms of service to our customers and are continuously seeking new ways of doing this.” ParkMagic was founded in Limerick in 2005 by Hayes and Paul Fitzgerald.
Park Magic’s Mobile Parking Service (MPS) is the world’s first in-car parking permit display system controlled using a mobile phone. When the driver pulls into a parking spot on the street, they dial one number from their mobile phone and within seconds the in-car display unit indicates that parking has been paid.
The company is currently in negotiations with a number of local authorities around the country to expand the availability of its services nationwide. They hope to provide Ireland with a standardised parking payment system where the customer can park in every city or town without the need to coin feed meters or waste time looking to buy parking discs.
The company opened its US office in 2006 and a UK office earlier this year. ParkMagic recently won the contract to implement its mobile parking payment system in the commercial downtown area of Chicago. The company employs 15 people and is now recruiting to double this number to 30 people.
ParkMagic offers parking operators a fully managed service which is revenue efficient. www.parkmagic.ie
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