Smart Cities

Stockholm, Sweden - EasyPark Group, a leading provider of digital parking and mobility solutions, announces the completion of its strategic acquisition of Flowbird Group. Together, the company will use its combined capabilities to deliver full-service parking and transportation solutions to ease urban mobility globally and expand into new markets. Cameron Clayton, current CEO of EasyPark Group, has been appointed as the CEO of the new joint company. Frédéric Beylier, the current CEO of Flowbird Group, is leaving the company. "Today marks a step toward improving space utilization worldwide as EasyPark Group and Flowbird come together as one team. Our broader set of offerings will empower our customers to optimize mobility and reinvest in public transportation, greenspaces and the revitalization of urban centers. I invite cities, transportation authorities and organizations across the mobility industry to join us on this journey. Together, we'll make cities more livable," said Cameron Clayton, CEO of EasyPark Group. The acquisition uniquely positions the joint company to future-proof cities with smart parking and transportation solutions. Through a localized approach, the company will meet each city's needs with a complementary mix of mobile paid parking, pay-and-display machines, public transport solutions, accompanied by suitable pricing, parking policies, data and insights. "This acquisition marks an exciting chapter for mobility, unlocking new possibilities and the potential to create value for people, customers, partners, and municipalities. As I step aside after a thrilling growth journey with the Flowbird teams, I'm confident that the future of the joint company holds more promising adventures and successes with its talented and dedicated people." says Frédéric Beylier, CEO of Flowbird Group. For now, it's business continuity to deliver the highest quality service to our customers and partners. As the new, joint company begins the foundation to build a leading global mobility platform, more information will be shared on organizational structure in the coming months. Vitruvian Partners, Verdane and Searchlight Capital Partners L.P., the investment firms that will own the joint company, support the acquisition and are proud for the two companies to come together. The parties have agreed not to disclose the terms of the transaction. "In an Open Letter to the Industry, our newly appointed CEO, Cameron Clayton, shares his insights on what this means for our customers and the future of urban mobility." Follow EasyPark Group in our newsroom: www.easyparkgroup.com/news About EasyPark Group EasyPark Group is a global mobility platform provider with the vision to make cities more livable. With award-winning technology, EasyPark Group has eased parking since 2001 and today, the company helps drivers save time and money by finding and managing parking and electric vehicle charging. It allows businesses, parking operators, property owners and cities to administrate, plan and take data-driven decisions. EasyPark Group owns and develops the apps EasyPark, ParkMobile, RingGo and Park-line and operates in over 4,000 cities across more than 20 countries. In 2024, EasyPark Group was listed as one of the fastest growing companies in Europe by Financial Times and Statista. Visit www.easyparkgroup.com for the latest news and information. About Flowbird Group Flowbird Group solutions are used in 6,000 cities in 80 countries to make journeys effortless. The company's relentless desire to enable mobility, through frictionless technology, which gives back time to us all, is the driving force behind the innovations. Flowbird Group is dedicated to complete, data-led solutions, which can be used to inform mobility policy and make a positive impact.

Houston, TX – Convergentz, a leading Master Systems Integrator specializing in smart building technologies, is excited to announce its partnership with Frogparking, a global leader in innovative parking management solutions. Through this strategic collaboration, Convergentz will become a value-added reseller of Frogparking technology, bringing advanced smart parking solutions further to the U.S. market. As urban areas continue to grow, the demand for efficient parking management has never been higher. Frogparking’s cutting-edge parking technology includes an end-to-end solution consisting of access control systems, parking guidance systems, seamless mobile applications, parking software solutions and powerful analytics. Convergentz will leverage its expertise in smart infrastructure to deliver these benefits to a wide range of industries, including commercial real estate, healthcare, and education. “We are thrilled to partner with Frogparking and offer their innovative parking solutions to our clients,” said Stan Byers RCDD, Director, Pre-construction at Convergentz. “Frogparking’s technology aligns perfectly with our mission to radically improve the environments in which people live, work, learn, and play. Frogparking’s unified platform allows us to connect smart buildings to smart city developments by providing our customers with innovative, efficient, reliable solutions.” This partnership will enable Convergentz to expand its smart building portfolio, providing customers with future-proof parking technologies that enhance operational efficiency and user satisfaction. Frogparking’s scalable solutions cater to various environments, from small parking lots to large urban centers, making it a versatile addition to Convergentz’s offering. “At Frogparking, we are dedicated to transforming the way businesses manage parking,” said Shareena Sandbrook, CEO at Frogparking. “Our partnership with Convergentz is a fantastic opportunity to further extend our reach and provide our world-class solutions to more parking operations across the United States.” The combined expertise of Convergentz and Frogparking will enable clients to seamlessly integrate advanced parking management into their smart building projects, offering unmatched efficiency, sustainability, and user convenience.

In a recent blog post, Casey Jones, CAPP, PMP, played a game of two truths and a lie and I thought I would play a game with our readers too. So, let’s play Would You Rather: Fly or be invisible? Travel to the past or the future? Pet dragon or a pet unicorn? For me - fly, future and dragon. Fly because I spend far too much time in traffic in Houston, where we rank #4 on a list of the worst cities to drive in. Future because I am excited about what is going on in the transportation realm and how great to imagine a world where we are no longer making lists of cities with the worst traffic. Finally, dragon because I need a friend to spit fire for me sometimes! All that being said, regardless of your choices – I think I can safely assume that you too are interested in the future of mobility. Download a copy of IPMI’s most recent publication, Smart Transportation for Parking and Mobility Practitioners, where you can review real-world case studies of organizations that have implemented smart transportation programs and the positive impact they have made on their communities. And I would love to hear your Would You Rather choices, so drop me an email at maria.irshad@houstontx.gov. Maria Irshad, MPA, CAPP, is the Deputy Director for the City of Houston, Texas (ParkHouston).

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My two truths and a lie: I became submarine and airborne qualified in the same summer. I am the 1975 U10 Mutton Busting Champion for Gallatin County, MT. I was once featured on the Travel Channel. The last one is true and quite an experience. I got to share some of the cool and up-and-coming technology for parking and mobility. That was over 10 years ago now, and some of the solutions have materialized (robotic parking), while others have not (3D holographic car locators). Throughout our industry's history, we've relied on technology and innovation to make the movement of people and goods more resource-efficient, convenient, safe, secure, and equitable.  You'll recognize this as the definition of Smart Transportation, and you can download IPMI's recent publication, Smart Transportation for Parking and Mobility Practitioners: Concepts, Applications and Case Studies to learn more.  This practical guide defines smart transportation and uses real-world and case studies to illustrate how technology can be used to achieve our most important parking and mobility management goals. Casey Jones, CAPP, is the Senior Director of Customer Success for Flash and a member of the IPMI Board of Directors. Casey can be reached at casey.jones@flashparking.com.

Hello Fellow IPMI Friends- Here is a little background of Charleston County Parking Operations, our primary function is to provide support for the County Office Building and the County Courthouse located in downtown Charleston.  As many of you know, the City of Charleston is known for its history, proximity to beaches and many tourist attractions.  When you factor all of this in, parking is at a premium in downtown Charleston. I have been employed with Charleston County for over 16 years and in my time our camera surveillance system has improved significantly.  The camera system plays a vital role in our daily operation at Charleston County.  Our staff utilize the cameras to proactively assist customers, verify customers disabled placards, equipment malfunctions, incidents etc.   An excellent example of our staff utilizing the cameras, a customer had a seizure in the elevator and one of our employees saw this on camera and immediately went to check on them and called 9-1-1.  This is just one instance of our staff assisting customers. One of our biggest benefits of the cameras is recouping damages throughout garages.  Examples are broken gates, hit and runs, breaking and entering, and other criminal activity.  At the garages we have a very complex situation, Charleston County owns and operates garages within the City of Charleston.  This does create some confusion at times on what agency should respond to certain calls. It is extremely important for us to maintain a positive and proactive relationship with the local law enforcement jurisdiction.  The value of these relationships is tremendous not only for us, but for our customers! Paul Whetzel, CAPP is the Parking Operations Manager for the County of Charleston, SC. Paul can be reached at PWhetzel@charlestoncounty.org. I often share with parking employees we have to continue to change to meet the expectations of the future.  Embracing change is hard for so many employees, but it is one thing that motivates me to seek out new parking innovations and sparks my creative side on how to improve the customer parking experience.   How can I lead better? Do I need to change or does my operation need to do things differently to meet customer expectations? I have been in two different arenas from a university parking environment to now the municipal side. While change may bring some angst or anxiety you get used to a certain response or non-response from administrators. Not only is the City of Bloomington getting a new mayor this year, it is also an electoral year.  However, I believe a certain amount of change makes us better professionals, better service agents to our community at large and provides a different look on how we should be doing things differently if it is broken!   I know clear directives and strong leadership ensures that we are on the same path to making our City better each year. My hope not only for my staff but for all the parking professionals going through “the changing of the guard”, that you keep moving forward with your mission, listen, seek to understand first and give the new administration the opportunity to prove themselves.   Always provide honest feedback to your department head about how the staff is transitioning.  Ask questions for clarification if you don’t understand, don’t assume you have all the facts.    Be open to see both sides.    I am probably going to have to read this advice in the coming months as I go through the first administrative change in my professional career in the city. Are you going through changing of the guard, administration and or leadership?   How will approach your next administrative change?   From John F. Kennedy’s perspective will you choose, growth or safety? Michelle L. Wahl, CAPP, is the Parking Services Director for the City of Bloomington, IN. Michelle can be reached at michelle.wahl@bloomington.in.gov. Our two on-campus parking structures have about 200 cameras covering almost every inch of space. Our department has a significant role in installing well over 50 other cameras around campus to oversee parking areas and major points of traffic and pedestrian flow. High volume bus stops and pay-station locations are top priorities, and our dispatcher routinely monitors and checks them for things amiss. Perhaps unusually, we are separated from the University Police Department which has shared access to the cameras providing a valuable safety resource. One person with a virtual presence across half the campus at same time, managing equipment and various situations. We are not cruel, though. One of the TVs in dispatch has the Weather Channel on all the time and sometimes we even let them have visitors! Harold Robinson, CAPP, is the Assistant Director of Parking and Transportation Systems for The University of Mississippi. Harold can be reached at hdrobins@olemiss.edu. Growing demand for EV charging: Global EV sales surge: in 2023, global EV sales hit a record 10 million, up 55% from 2022. EVs are expected to account for 18% of total car sales by 2024. EV adoption rates: the number of EVs on U.S. roads is projected to reach 26.4 million by 2030, compared to 2.6 million in 2021. Consumer demand for charging: 81% of EV drivers expect access to charging at places where they park for extended periods (such as parking lots, multifamily developments, and workplaces). EV charging as a competitive advantage: Attracting tenants and visitors: 40% of drivers have said they’re more likely to choose a parking facility with EV chargers. Increase in property value: properties with EV charging stations have seen rent premiums increase by 3-5%, and property values can increase by 7% in markets where EV adoption is strong. Parking facilities with charging stations: facilities with EV charging tend to experience higher occupancy rates, especially in urban areas where EV drivers actively seek charging options. Courtney Henry-Irwin is the Director of Partner Development for EVPassport. She can be reached at cirwin@evpassport.com.

Melissa Rysak, editorrysak@parking-mobility.org Shoulder pads, neon, leg warmers, acid wash, big hair, mom jeans—need I say more? As a proud member of Generation X, I am a survivor of some of the scariest trends in human history. The 1980s were ripe with trends that (thankfully) came and went. Trends are funny things—some stick and some

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