Hello and welcome to the new era of cities that is steering away from car-centric planning towards sustainable and human-centric planning. Why does it concern office managers? Buckle up for a moment as we explain.

Cities are growing bigger and faster; Europe’s urbanization rate is expected to reach 84% by 2050. However, the growth rate for parking isn’t keeping pace as local authorities collectively rethink the fundamentals of our cities. Faced with mounting challenges, they need to accommodate this surge in urbanizing people while improving the quality of life for citizens. Simultaneously, they strive to meet ambitious goals to combat climate change.

Two big goals to meet:

Transportation and, in turn, parking are two crucial factors influencing the outcomes of these goals. To meet these objectives, cities are rethinking how we use our urban landscapes. Parking is a critical aspect of achieving these goals for two reasons.

Firstly, it occupies a significant amount of space; street-side parking could be repurposed for bikes or trees, providing shade during summer heat waves. Similarly, parking lots could be transformed for mixed-use or housing development.

Just as local authorities are evolving transportation and parking norms, office space managers and employers should also play their contributing role to this exciting, more sustainable new future. Why? The workplace generates one of the most common reasons for people to get in their cars. In 2022, data shows it is the most common reason to drive in the UK and the second most common reason in the EU.

Due to shifting employment desires, competitive labor markets, and ESG requirements, employers are increasingly focusing on employee satisfaction, while they're also operating in increasingly competitive real estate spaces. We know rent isn’t cheap and that you also want to optimize your office space – especially so you can better prioritize people and leak limited valuable resources on car parking in an increasingly limited parking city.

This is the time to proactively adapt to this future and get smart about how your company uses its parking. The key to tapping into this solution is smart parking management. Smart parking management solutions provide a win-win-win scenario: more satisfied employees who can ensure they have parking, optimized real estate space for building managers, and a contribution to keeping cities on track to reach their sustainability goals.

Are you on board for this future?