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Implementing A Parking System

Evaluation of the tender - Choosing the right operator

Selecting the right operator to manage your parking will make the difference between success and failure. This selection should entail far more than just the evaluation of the monetary value offered. Experience and proven track record is paramount and verifying this with a tender�s existing clients should be a key part of the evaluation process.

Confirm the Employment Structure

A history of strike action is indicative of a very risky business practise. If the operator does not have a good employment policy for its parking marshals, which should be demonstrated in the tender, the two key objectives of the system will not be achieved. The key objectives of the system are the turnover of parking as well as the creation of employment for the community.

We have succeeded in developing the correct balance in our employment structures to ensure that the parking marshals will receive a sustainable income throughout the period of the contract.

Compliance with labour legislation is paramount for us and our employment structures are such that we adhere to all labour law requirements. Every parking marshal is formally employed by the company (no labour brokers are involved) and paid a daily attendance fee plus commission and bonuses.

Note that paying parking marshals a commission is vital to the success of the system. If parking marshals are not goal incentivised, through commission and bonuses, to collect parking fees from the motorists they will fail to do so. Paying a parking marshal a fixed wage will NOT achieve this goal and should be avoided completely.

Ensure the Equipment to be used is the best

Selection of the hand held equipment and system is very important, there are a lot of start-up systems available, but there is only one that stands out far above the rest. We are an officially appointed operator of the quickpark system which is the best handheld parking management system available anywhere in the world today.

Key to the quickpark handheld system has its patented "low cost" occupancy management system which ensures that all vehicles parking in an area are recorded on the system. This guarantees that the parking statistics are 100% accurate and allow us to collect parking fees in excess of the time parked by vehicles.

Verify the Tenderer�s Financial Offer

In a tender scenario, any share of revenue can be offered to the municipality, but it is important to determine what the actual value of that share will be to the municipality. Each revenue share offer should be evaluated in terms of the track record of the operator�s paid occupancy. An operator with a history of low paid occupancy but with a high share for the municipality will provide less return to the municipality than an operator who has produced a high paid occupancy but offers a smaller share of the income to the municipality.

There is an old saying in the parking business "100% of nothing is still nothing" whereas a 25% share of a well-run parking operation will amount to significant income stream to the municipality.

In the example above and to the right, where the municipality gets a larger share of the revenue this revenue is very low compared to the example on the left. This will occur because there will not be enough parking revenue for the operator to pay the parking marshals a liveable wage as well as the costs of running the operation. The site will collapse financially from strikes and desertion of post and the municipality will therefore get a share of a pie that will get smaller and smaller.

Do not award the tender on price alone.

Check the Tenderer’s Track Record

Although some of its members were involved with parking management from 2000 NumQue Parking commenced its first operation in August 2005. Around 260 parking marshals were deployed to the CBD of Cape Town with Sea Point following 2 weeks later with approximately 50 parking marshals. In September 2005 Claremont, with 25 parking marshals, and Bellville with another 50 marshals were implemented completing the total roll out for the Cape Town contract at the time.

The CBD of Cape town was managed for four years after which NumQue Parking continued operations in Sea Point, Claremont and Bellville. During 2012 we started using the quickpark parking management system as it was found to be the market leader in this field. Over an 18 month period we have moved all of our operations onto the quickpark system to the benefit of our clients.

The above details can be verified directly by Cape Town municipality as we pride ourselves on the level of service we render to both the public and the Municipality.

Every tender should provide a background to their operations in a similar manner as presented above along with municipal contact details. This will allow the accuracy of the information to be verified and the tenderers past track record to be checked.

Tender Specifications

Setting the correct tender specification will go a long way towards finding the correct operator who can deliver a sustainable service to the Municipality and the community.

The 15 Key points to include in a tender are:

1. Job Creation
3. Employment Relationship
5. Theft Prevention
7. Electronic Display Ticket
9. Information Technology System
11. Operator Track Record
13. Law Enforcement Enhancement
15. Financial Projections

2. Accommodate Existing Parking Attendants
4. Increase Security
6. Data Capture
8. Rugged, Field Tested Equipment
10. Reduction of Street Furniture
12. Prepaid Parking Touchcard
14. Monthly Reporting

Understand the costs involved

The operation of a handheld parking marshal system is expensive. Typical costs include salaries, uniforms, consumables, training, HR Management, equipment, office rental, cash collection, bank deposit fees, insurance, transport and site maintenance to name a few. Any well-run private company strives to control its costs and to run an efficient operation; however, there is a certain revenue level below which an operation makes losses.

Under company law a private company cannot trade at a loss without being declared insolvent. It is therefore important to be mindful of the goal of implementing a parking system in the first place. If that goal is only to generate as much revenue as possible for the municipality then there will not be sufficient income to make the operation financially viable for an operator and the system will fail.

Have the by-laws amended well before the start date

It is very important that the By-laws required to operate a parking marshal system be promulgated well before the deployment of the system. We have a draft set of such by-laws available. This is critical so that fine determination by the Justice Department can be clear and in place for law enforcement purposes.

Public Participation

All role players must be kept abreast of developments and the general public must be informed through a media campaign by the Municipality before implementation. This will allow any objections to be voiced and taken into account well before the start of the operation. In practise, if this is not done, then on the first day of operation motorists will resist the system and potentially cause delays in further deployment.

Road Signage and bay markings

An important part of the implementation of a parking system is to ensure that all road markings and road signage be up to standard on deployment. This can be a responsibility passed onto the successful tenderer, however, it is important to note that this will increase the capital needed to be invested by the operator and by so doing increase their costs of operating the site.

Discuss the implementation of the system with the chosen operator

The more input that the preferred operator can provide to the implementation of the Parking Management System, the better the start-up of the operation will be. Once the choice of operator has been made, use their skills and their experience early on to ensure that every detail is addressed and taken care of. If the choice of operator was well researched then their experience would be invaluable in assisting with best options for start-up ensuring that nothing is left to chance. This will have a very positive impact the day the system starts operating and will reduce the initial period required for the system to be accepted by all stakeholders.

Why is a Good
Parking System Important?

Planning a
Parking System

Implementing a
Parking System

Operating a
Parking System

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