Tag Archives: COVID-19

Connecting Over Koenigsegg

February 5, 2021 Kim Fernandez Leave a comment

By Kim Fernandez

Instagram populates your search page with images it thinks you’ll like based on your previous searches (and sometimes what you’re talking about, but we’ll address creepy another day). My search? All exotic cars.

Bugatti, Apollo, Koenigsegg, Pagani–these were not names I knew two years ago. But they are central to my on-campus college kid’s world, along with Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche, and others. Every day, he messages me Instagram posts of exotics and I message him photos back, and so even though my own ride is “sensible,” the supercars have taken over my search feed.

Seeing a notification that a car photo waits for me in my messages lights up my day. My kid wanted to share something with me. It’s a “hey, Mom,” and a little “I’m good,” and sometimes it’s “You up?” that, every so often, leads to a deeper conversation over text. The cars are a connection between us and the daily linchpin that lets us know the other is here. Right now, being here is huge.

Johnna Frosini, CAPP’s fabulous story in this month’s Parking & Mobility magazine is all about those connections and how important they are. Coffee over Zoom, a distanced walk, and even a quick “how’s it going” text can all be the kickoff to deeper conversations with our colleagues, and those conversations–even just those quick check-ins–may be just the perfect thing if someone’s facing challenges.

I read the other day that astronauts on the space station face their greatest homesickness and the biggest psychological hurdles of their long journeys the two weeks before returning to Earth, when it’s so close and so much time away at the same time. I think a lot of us are right there right now, with light at the end of this terribly long tunnel we can see but not quite touch.

Thanks, Johnna, for the insight and wisdom. You’ve done a great service for all of us. Hang in there, gang, and keep reaching out–we’re almost there and that little touch-base can make all the difference.

Kim Fernandez is IPMI’s director of publications.

IPMI & Member News

IPMI News: Take the 2021 IPMI Market Trends & Recovery Survey

February 3, 2021 Rachel Yoka Leave a comment

IPMI has released our new 2021 Market Trends & Recovery Survey, and we need your insight!

Members and industry colleagues are invited to submit. Contact information is never required, but if you would like to be entered in our raffles, please be sure to fill this out in full. All participants who share their contact information will be entered in a raffle for two prizes: an Apple Watch and a Nintendo Switch.

Complete the survey before March 1, 2021!

IPMI Blog, Resources

Please Stop Apologizing

January 29, 2021 Kim Fernandez Leave a comment

By Rita Pagan, DES

Please stop apologizing during online meetings for dogs barking, cats on your laptop, kids asking for lunch, and leaf blowers.

By now we all know the work-from-home quarantine COVID-19 drill. Working families everywhere have figured out how to manage this interesting time. Whether it’s a full day of Zoom meetings on our calendars or socially distant online holiday gatherings, we’re now pros at navigating the virtual world. My 9-year-old knows Zoom functionality better than I do!

On top of that, we are keeping our kids educated, entertained, and hopefully busy enough they don’t try some crazy quarantine activity like cutting their own hair (yes, I found hair in the bathroom sink this week!). The point is, we have gotten a system down pat–even if that system is utter chaos at times. Most importantly, we are doing all of this while trying to keep ourselves mentally, and emotionally sane, trying to resist the PJ’s-all-day look accompanied by the entire pack of Oreo cookies for dinner. I have watched ALL OF NETFLIX.

So no need to apologize for the background noise. We get it. We are all dealing with it and personally, I find it oddly reassuring. It means I am not the only one losing my mind and juggling entirely too much. Let’s have patience and understanding with each other. Mute and get that kid a PB&J! Or in my case, maybe a hat for that home haircut someone just gave themselves.

Rita Pagan, DES, is IPMI’s events and exhibits manager, currently managing our Mobility & Innovation Summit, online, Feb. 24-25. Don’t worry about your background noise or your baseball hat–register here.

IPMI Blog, Resources

MaaS, EV Charging, Cashless Payments Top Trends for 2021

January 25, 2021 Kim Fernandez Leave a comment

Transportation and technology concept. ITS (Intelligent Transport Systems). Mobility as a service. Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS), electric vehicle (EV) charging, and cashless parking payments are the three top trends we’ll see in transportation this year, according to Global Banking & Finance Review.

“The biggest challenge on all businesses into 2021 will be how they continue to adapt and react to the ever changing new normal we are all experiencing,” says the article published earlier this morning. It goes on to say the top three transportation trends will be:

MaaS: With habit changes thanks to COVID lockdowns, better technology, and a desire for simpler planning, MaaS–the ability to plan a journey from start to finish in one place–has found its footing. The development of apps that let people plug in a start and a finish to get a list of transportation options and pay for them all in one place is a big boost.
EV charging: More EVs are being sold than ever and forecasts say there will be 42 million charging points worldwide by 2030. Demand for charging plus faster, easier to pay for systems mean chargers are becoming a necessary part of infrastructure.
Cashless payment for parking: “Drivers are more self-reliant and empowered than ever before, having adopted technologies that work to make their life increasingly efficient,” says the article–and COVID-19 accelerated a push for contactless on top of cashless. This trend will continue to grow.

Read the whole article here.

Free Online Shoptalk: Airports: Short- and Long-term Recovery Moderated by Matt Sherwood, CM – MWAA

Airports: Short- and Long-term Recovery Moderated by Matt Sherwood, CM, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority – MWAA

March 3, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm ET

To register, click here.

Free to all industry professionals.

Join IPMI for our next online Shoptalk addressing the parking, transportation, and mobility industry’s response and recovery planning. Open to all, join us for discussions centered on best practices, next steps, and the challenges ahead.

Shoptalk Summary

With COVID-19 vaccines becoming more widely available and life—and travel—returning to something resembling normal, airports are seeing more traffic, which means more people parking and using mobility options. Recovery is in sight.

Join us to talk about how airport parking and transportation operations are recovering: What’s going back to “normal,” and what new technologies, practices, and ways of doing things will stay permanent. Bring your challenges, solutions so far, questions, and observations for an open roundtable discussion.

Submit your questions and thoughts for the discussion on the registration page.

Matthew Sherwood, C.M., Metropolitan Washing Airport Authority – MWAA

Matt Sherwood is a revenue strategy program manager for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, whose mission is to develop, promote, and safely operate Reagan National and Dulles International airports. He has been in the parking and ground transportation industry for 15 years. Matt is part of the team that is responsible for managing the airports’ commercial parking portfolio and his primary focus is consumer strategy, enhancing the customer experience, revenue optimization, and pricing.

He is actively involved in the industry and is currently serving on IPMI’s Technology Committee and Awards of Excellence Committee.

Free Online Shoptalk: Data-driven Parking and Mobility Management Moderated by Kevin White, AICP, Walker Consultants

Data-driven Parking and Mobility Management Moderated by Kevin White, AICP, Walker Consultants

May 5, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm ET

To register, click here.

Free to all industry professionals.

Shoptalk Summary

From its evolution as a buzzword to part of daily operations, data has grown into a critical part of both regular business and planning for the future—and no more so than in a time of great change for parking and mobility. We’ll talk about how parking organizations are collecting, analyzing, and using data; what kinds of data they’re using; and how they’ve set up their staff to collect, analyze, and use data for right-now and the future—practical solutions and demystifying data-driven parking management. We’ll also talk about several case studies from real organizations and have an open, roundtable discussion with questions and answers.

Submit your questions and thoughts for the discussion on the registration page.

Kevin White, AICP, Walker Consultants

Kevin White is a parking and mobility planner and consultant for Walker Consultants based in their Minneapolis, Minn., office. He specializes in parking and mobility planning, curbside management, and transportation demand management, with a focus on policy and user behavior and integrating all modes of transportation. Kevin is passionate about solving site circulation and parking challenges on campuses and in cities by integrating a blend of infrastructure, program, and policy strategies that promote access for all types of users. He strives to create planning processes that are meaningful and informative, with a focus on stakeholder transparency and the use of data and visualizations to tell a story, generate ideas, and gain consensus.

Free Online Shoptalk: Touchless Technology: The Latest Updates and Case Studies. Moderated by David Hoyt

Touchless Technology: The Latest Updates and Case Studies. Moderated by David Hoyt

April 7, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm ET

To register, click here.

Free to all industry professionals.

Shoptalk Summary

Challenges sometimes present opportunity and that’s definitely true in the parking and mobility industry. Touchless technology saw huge demand and growth in 2020 due to COVID-19 and a desire to put patrons’ minds at ease as they made their way through cities, campuses, medical facilities, airports, and other parking areas.

Join IPMI members to hear case studies of touchless technology implementation, learn where the technology is going (and how far it’s come), share your own successes and challenges, and ask questions of our experts.

Submit your questions and thoughts for the discussion on the registration page.

David Hoyt, SVP, Sales and Account Management, ParkMobile

David Hoyt, a parking and transportation professional with more than 20 years of expertise, manages sales and partnerships at ParkMobile. Prior to joining Parkmobile, he was national account manager for T2 Systems, responsible for sales and client relations in the Southeast U.S., Caribbean, and strategic accounts. David began his parking career with Standard Parking, where he worked for 13 years and served as vice president of operations, managing the company’s portfolio of municipal and private parking operations throughout the State of Florida.

IPMI Blog, Resources

Looking Back, Planning Ahead, and Changing Our Perspective

January 21, 2021 Kim Fernandez Leave a comment

By Christina Jones, CAPP

Moving to Colorado in 2015 as an introvert who had been out of college longer than I care to admit, I was terrified by the idea of building a social network from scratch. So I challenged myself to try one new thing each month. It could be anything but it had to involve interacting with at least one stranger each time.

Initially it was intimidating going out alone and trying to start a conversation with strangers, so I stuck to things that centered on my interests, like a cooking class or a guided tour. When I decided to stretch outside my comfort zone, I tried a Bollywood dance class, then went on a cruise alone where each night I enjoyed dinner with a new stranger as we chatted about the day’s activities. I was really hitting my stride, gaining confidence, developing friendships, and expanding my network–and then along came 2020.

In looking back at the year of isolation and virtual everything, I was dismayed at a sense I was coming up short in my continued goals to try new things and meet new people. But my perspective was changed today by a comment from a colleague on a video call. He was talking about the challenges of changing the public’s parking perceptions, but it made me realize new experiences and connections were made during the year; they just came about a little differently.

In parking, we often talk about real versus perceived problems and how for many, parking and transportation system perceptions are reality. When things don’t initially appear to be as you hoped, consider changing your perspective and you may be pleasantly surprised. Going into 2021, keep the bar set high on your goals but give yourself flexibility in achieving them. 2021 has a lot of potential and we are all anxious to come out of the gate at full speed, but pace yourself and realize that new challenges may require a new way of thinking.

Christina Jones, CAPP, is a parking analyst with Walker Consultants.

IPMI Blog, Resources

What Cities Need

January 19, 2021 Kim Fernandez Leave a comment

By David Feehan

As January 20 approaches with a new administration in Washington, D.C. (where I live), I have to express my outrage for recent events. I love living in Washington and I have great respect for the heart of our federal government. Having said that, it is important that we look forward to what a new administration might mean for transportation, parking, and cities in general.

Let’s look at what we need. Cities–downtowns in particular–are hurting right now because the virus that has killed more than 365,000 Americans has also nearly killed many businesses. Parking and transit systems have been hit hard by loss of revenues. And city governments have been struggling with budget issues as tax revenues and parking revenues are greatly diminished.

Everywhere we turn, almost no aspect of urban living goes unaffected. I work with the University of Minnesota, and the absence of sports revenues, parking revenues, and other types of income have forced the layoffs of faculty and staff. The ancillary loss of business to business districts surrounding the university has yet to be measured.

There will be a major role for the new administration to play in helping cities recover. Direct financial aid will be needed. Investments in infrastructure and support for transportation systems and specific grant programs can help recovery. Bus and subway systems will need subsidies until riders return and in the meantime, rolling stock will need ongoing maintenance. Old programs such as Urban Development Action Grants might be revived to help developers complete stalled projects.

Local readers will look to new cabinet officers for creative ideas. The departments of transportation, housing and urban development, commerce, and other cabinet-level departments should develop and implement new programs that encourage recovery and provide a bridge to stability. And the new normal will undoubtedly look different than the old normal. Teleworking, e-commerce, ghost kitchens, and food delivery systems will offer new challenges and opportunities.

We have to put 2020 behind us and look to the future.

David Feehan is president of Civitas Consultants, LLC.

IPMI Blog, Resources

Prepare. Plan. Commute. Debrief.

January 13, 2021 Kim Fernandez Leave a comment

By Kelly Koster

Uncertainty has been the recurring theme of 2020, and I doubt very much will be certain again in 2021. How do you adapt your parking and mobility program for uncertain times? Through skiing of course. Let me explain.

In an effort to social distance my ski habit this winter, I’m moving to the backcountry and taking an avalanche 101 course to prepare. And I’ve found the parallels to mobility planning are uncanny.

Avalanche training is all about minimizing risk and removing as much uncertainty as possible from your ride. The planning isn’t sexy (leave that to the fresh powder tracks), but it’s very necessary. In the backcountry, we use a framework to manage risk and uncertainty with diligent preparation, planning, technology, education, and teamwork. Do the best you can with the information you have available. Continually learn while riding; debrief and improve in real-time. Prepare. Plan. Ride. Debrief.

Now, re-read that paragraph and replace Ride with Commute.

Currently, the world of parking and commuting is full of uncertainty, and the avalanche training framework can help us prepare for an avalanche of another kind–overwhelming congestion and parking demand.

As the COVID-19 vaccine is distributed to frontline workers, the return-to-office timeline has seen more certainty building around it. Major companies across the U.S. are announcing plans for hybrid workplaces once the pandemic subsides. This means more choice for employees–more flexibility to work from home OR the office. And when making the daily decision to commute, they can get there by foot, bus, bike, car, or scooter.

The key to unlocking this new world of work for your employees? Adaptable parking technology with the power to accommodate flexible schedules and modes of transportation. Now is the time for industry professionals to share, learn, and adopt best practices as we begin planning our return to the workplace in 2021.

Just like in the backcountry, we’re in this together. We depend on each other. And we need to work together to solve the challenges that lie ahead by giving our businesses, commuters and cities that much more certainty when it comes to transportation, parking, and mobility.

Kelly Koster is the director of marketing and corporate affairs at Luum. Together with parking and mobility leaders from Arrive, Bedrock Detroit, and Expedia Group, she will moderate a panel on “The Hybrid Workplace: What it means for parking technology, commute flexibility, and mode shift” at IPMI’s Mobility & Innovation Summit Feb. 24-25, online. Click here for details and to register.