Testimonials Smart cameras ease parking pressure in cities

Thanks to local businesses, the heart of the Negenmanneke district in Sint-Pieters-Leeuw is pleasantly busy. Many residents shop by car, but only 35 parking spaces are available around the church. “We wanted a smoother traffic flow to ensure local shoppers can always find free spaces,” says mayor Jan Desmeth. “That’s why we introduced a blue zone.” These areas require a local permit and have limits on how long people can park for free. 

The municipality partnered with parking firm Optimal Parking Control (OPC). “But it’s not feasible to have a traffic warden on site at all times,” Desmeth adds. OPC suggested consulting Orange Business, and Orange and CommuniThings’ smart parking solution proved a perfect fit. 

Shopkeepers tell me customers have less trouble finding parking.

Mayor Jan Desmeth

Three ANPR cameras now monitor all the relevant parking spaces. For several years, municipalities have had access to street lighting electricity by Fluvius, so no extra digging is required for the infrastructure. “When the lights are on at night, the camera gets power and a battery is charged. During the day the lights are off and the camera runs on that battery,” Desmeth explains.

Privacy first

The cameras capture images at fixed intervals and are connected to the backend platform via Orange’s 4G network. The system detects vehicles and automatically monitors parking duration. To protect privacy, non-parking zones are masked and faces and irrelevant licence plates are blurred. “The cameras themselves don’t store images and we use European servers,” stresses Ann Demarche, COO at CommuniThings. Access is tightly secured with strong authentication and logging. The municipal authorities cannot access the images.

If a vehicle stays in the blue zone for more than two hours, a staff member from OPC first validates the notification. Fines are only issued after this manual review, and only images of actual infringements are kept, fully compliant with camera legislation.

Always free parking spaces

Desmeth is happy to note that Weerstandsplein now nearly always has parking spaces. “Right after school is the only time parking pressure is high,” he says. “Previously, there were rarely any spaces available. Shopkeepers say customers can now find parking more easily.”     

Permanent monitoring makes the blue zone effective. The mayor says the costs of the technology just about balance the savings from automation. “Our main goal wasn’t savings but adding value for local shoppers.” The ANPR cameras also benefit the mobility plan. “As long as these constant checks ensure parking is available, there’s no need to expand the blue zone,” he says. “We want to limit the zone to what’s needed for a vibrant shopping area, without taking too many resident spaces.”