By Kevin White, CAPP, AICP

Information is power, as they say. This is certainly true in the world of parking and mobility, where a wealth of payment, curb use, traffic, travel pattern, citation, and a variety of other data is being collected and documented. Emerging platforms and technologies bring new technologies, and municipalities, universities, and other parking and mobility operations are working to ingest data from a variety of platforms and use it to make informed planning, policy, and operations decisions. But data-driven parking and mobility management is certainly not easy. Data streams are vast, and it can be difficult to identify and distinguish truly useful information. Operations need personnel experienced in organizing, summarizing, handling, and analyzing data. A plan has to be in place to ensure regular data collection, analysis, and evaluation–a clear pathway that identifies the types of decisions and outcomes that can be made based on key data performance indicators.

These topics and more are explored in “Drawing Back the Curtain,” in the April issue of Parking & Mobility. We will host a discussion-based Shoptalk on May 5 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern on this same topic.

The learning objectives of the Shoptalk are as follows:

• Define and demystify data-driven management.
• Learn how operations are leveraging and benefiting from data.
• Understand key considerations of a data-driven approach.
• Evaluate how your organization can benefit from data.
• Focus on data that matters and that you can gain value from.

We hope you’ll attend and hear from the municipal and university panelists, and also contribute your ideas and questions. We look forward to seeing you there.

Kevin White, CAPP, AICP, is a parking and mobility consultant with Walker Consultants. He’ll host an IPMI Shoptalk on this topic May 5. Click here for details and to register.