Electronic Parking Management System for disabled people of Chania Municipality

TOPIC:

Initiative

Electronic Parking Management System for disabled people of Chania Municipality

SUBMITTED FROM:

The total area of the new Municipality amounts to 356.12 square kilometers. The permanent population of the Municipality of Chania amounts, according to the data of the recent census (2011) of the Hellenic Statistical Authority, to 108,642 inhabitants (de facto population/real 116,154, legal 84,527) a number that represents 17.4% of the total population of the Region of Crete (623,065 inhabitants) and approximately 1% of the total population of the country (10,815,197 inhabitants).

The city of Chania is the seat of the Municipality and is the second largest city in Crete, built on the site of the Minoan settlement "Kydonia". It occupies an area of approximately 11 square kilometers and has a permanent population of 53,910 inhabitants (2011 census data). It has two main gateways: the airport in Akrotiri, and the port of Souda (the largest natural port in the Mediterranean). The city of Chania is a crossroads of cultures and continents, with a long history, natural beauties, unique architecture and rich tradition. The trademark of the city of Chania is the Venetian Port - in the old Town - with the Egyptian Lighthouse that stands proud over the centuries attracting the eyes of residents and visitors.

Objective Action

The Municipality of Chania, looking for solutions for the continuous improvement of the daily life of all citizens and in particular of vulnerable social groups, utilized technology as an excellent tool in this effort. In the Urban Center of Chania there are around 160 designated parking spaces for the disabled, which are illegally occupied every day by unauthorized persons. Consequently, an "intelligent-electronic" solution had to be found for the management of the seats, in order to prevent their illegal occupation and also to facilitate the movement of the disabled in the city. The ultimate goal is to change the "mentality" of the citizens and respect for fellow human beings with disabilities.

Target Audience

The pilot Electronic Parking Space Management System for the Disabled (ISDTHSA) is aimed at holders of Special Parking Passes for the Disabled. In addition, a special application-app "Parkalot Chania" has been developed which can be used by any interested party (citizen, visitor, etc.) who wishes to know online the availability of disabled parking spaces in the city as well as navigate to them.

Duration

Description

The electronic system for managing disabled parking spaces was designed by the Municipality of Chania and implemented by OTE SA in collaboration with the OTS company. This innovative system is based on the use of Narrow Band IoT ground sensors that support wireless connectivity with Bluetooth cards (BLE Beacon Cards). These Beacon Cards are placed inside the vehicle and when it is parked in a demarcated parking space, controlled by a sensor, through Bluetooth technology, the card and the sensor establish a telecommunication link by exchanging data. So, we know that the parking space was occupied by an authenticated user and in case an unauthenticated vehicle (without a Bluetooth card) parks in a controlled parking space it informs [e1] that it is illegal parking.

At the same time, the special digital app, ParkALot (Chania), has been developed and is working (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ots.openparkforchania&hl=en) which informs those interested, the Municipality of Chania as well as the Chania Traffic Department, in real time, among other things, for the availability of disabled parking spaces, as well as for their possible illegal occupation. This application received on 17/10/2019 a Gold Award in the Mobile Excellence Awards innovation competition.

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Impact on Society

As part of the pilot system, ground sensors have already been installed and monitored daily in ten (10) disabled parking spaces, in central parts of the city of Chania, and the first fifty (50[e1] ) Bluetooth (BLE Beacon Cards) have already been distributed. The system it has been tested and working effectively since June 2019 and very useful statistics have been extracted regarding seat occupancy.

For its productive operation, it is necessary to install it in all places for the disabled (160) and make cards available to all beneficiaries. The Municipality of Chania is the first Municipality in Greece and one of the first in Europe to install such an innovative system for the management of disabled parking spaces. All those who received the first 50 Bluetooth cards expressed very positive comments and are waiting for the system to be expanded to all the places in the city.