Research project on parking in the city
The Institute for Urban Development and Urban Traffic (ISB) of RWTH Aachen University, SONAH GmbH and the City of Aachen are jointly conducting a research project on the subject of inner-city parking.
The ACUP project (analysis of the characteristics of urban parking) is funded by the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) within the framework of the Modernity Fund (mFUND) funding guidelines with a total of almost 100,000 euros. The term is twelve months. The aim is to better understand the amount of inner-city parking space and parking behavior in different quarters. For this purpose, a digital parking register is being set up for the city of Aachen, which will also make the data available to the public via the city of Aachen’s geoportal. Data on parking spaces available in public / semi-public and private areas as well as real-time data on parking space occupancy in selected districts are integrated.
The available parking space is recorded based on existing data on parking spaces in the city. Various methods such as manual recording on site or the evaluation of aerial photos are provided for in this context. The area under consideration initially includes all areas in which regulations on resident parking currently apply. In addition, data on parking behavior is collected in real time in two quarters. The vehicles entering and leaving a parking space are recorded by video-based sensors. In this way, information can be obtained about typical parking processes, occupancy rates and times. The system is designed so that no personal data is recorded. SO NAH GmbH from Aachen is responsible for setting up and operating the sensors.
As a result, the project should provide information for research purposes in addition to the publicly accessible parking register. The findings on the use of parking spaces are analyzed in connection with the respective local conditions. From this, the ISB works out a division into different types of quarters based on usage structures, parking space supply and demand. This information forms an essential basis for targeted parking space management.
“Parking has increasingly come into focus as a research topic in recent years. We at the ISB deal with the city and the mobility of the future and develop concepts for the efficient use and division of inner-city space. A reliable database on the availability and use of parking space is of central importance. The ACUP project provides important insights in this context and helps us to better understand the processes involved in stationary traffic in large cities, ”says Professor Tobias Kuhnimhof, head of the Institute for Urban Planning and Urban Traffic at RWTH.
“We are very pleased that we can set up a digital parking cadastre with the ACUP project and evaluate an exemplary neighborhood typification.
The digitization of the parking areas is an essential component in order to offer the citizens of Aachen added value by simplifying the search for a parking space and at the same time to supplement the ongoing measures in traffic planning with corresponding real data “, adds Dr. Michael Pielen, Department of Digitization, Transport Systems and Automated Mobility of the City of Aachen.