Everyone knows the pain of waking up 30 minutes early to get a car park near work, only to find that there are no spaces left – and by the time you find one you’re an hour late to work, your boss is mad and you need to move your car again in two hours to avoid a parking fine.
Well Canberrans, we cried out and the Government listened!
From 29 April, Manuka will host a smart parking trial, designed to ease traffic congestion and help guide local drivers to available car parking spaces in the area.
Smart Parking is about to revolutionise the morning routine. All you need to do to be part of it is download an app! ParkCBR is available via Google Play and the Apple AppStore.
The app works through the use of in-ground sensors, WiFi and five new LED signs to provide real time parking availability information. It will also direct drivers to the under-utilised Furneaux Street carpark.
Basically, Smart Parking is real time information on parking that allows smart phone apps and traffic signs to guide road users to an available parking space in the area.
After 29 April, before getting in the car, be sure to activate the ParkCBR app on your smart phone, leave home later and get to work early! The app is also expected to facilitate Manuka’s peak parking demand for spaces in the mid morning, lunchtime and early evening.
But, we have saved the best for last! How many times have you had to stand in line in the cold to pay for parking? Every morning? Well, ParkCBR allows you to make mobile payments and top-ups that put an end to the line up and save you the hassle of running out of work to move your car.
The following streets are included in the Manuka Smart Parking trial:
On-Streets bays in the trial coverage zone:
- Furneaux (between Canberra Avenue and Murray Crescent)
- Bougainville (between Furneaux and Flinders Way)
- Flinders Way (between Murray Crescent and Canberra Ave)
- Franklin (between Captain Cook Crescent and Ducane Street)
- Captain Cook Crescent (both sides, between Canberra Avenue and Murray Crescent /Stuart Street).
Off-street bays in the trial coverage zone:
6. Furneaux Street carpark at the corner of Furneaux and Bougainville Street.
The Manuka Smart Parking trial will run over 12 months to evaluate the success of the initiative. If successful we could see smart parking revolutionise the morning parking routine throughout Canberra.
