The ParkPAD tool is finishing its test round across Europe in early Spring 2020

The Park4SUMP consortium is bringing together 16 cities from 15 different European countries, to work on the integration of parking management into SUMP planning processes. Now, in March 2020, almost 18 months into the project , the test phase of the ParkPAD audit tool is almost complete. This participative assessment tool has been developed to evaluate the current state of play of a city’s parking policy and to devise an action plan. It will go through a final intensive test period and is scheduled to be completed by Mid-March.

After having piloted in Gdansk, Poland in late spring 2019, some other cities, such as Krakow (PL), Slatina (RO), Sofia (BG) and Zadar (HR), carried out their first ParkPAD audit session during the Summer of 2019. The findings and experiences of these audits were shared among the consortium members during the Park4SUMP project meeting in Trondheim, Norway in early September 2019.

This project partner meeting allowed for further planning on the next steps and future audits over the course of Autumn and Winter 2019. During this period Sint-Niklaas (BE), Vitoria-Gasteiz (ES), Tallinn (EE) La Rochelle (FR), Umea (SE) and Freiburg (DE) started their ParkPAD process. The audit process comprises of two parts. The first part establishes the current parking situation in the city. Different elements of parking are assessed by various stakeholder groups. The second part of the ParkPAD audit takes these findings, considers them in the context of common goals and blends them into an action plan. Ideally these two audit parts are carried out in the form of two half-day sessions.

However, some flexibility in the planning of the ParkPAD audits has been required. Changing political realities, such as elections or political sensitivity, have delayed the ParkPAD take up in several partner cities, or have pushed the second ParkPAD session to a later date. Changing political support, was identified as one of the main challenges to this project at the outset. These experiences will be evaluated at the end of the European test roll out of the ParkPAD by the consortium.

The beginning of March will be an intensive ParkPAD period with audits taking place in Reggio Emilia, (IT) Shkoder (AL), Freiburg (DE), Krakow (PL) and Rotterdam (NL) .

In Rotterdam the ParkPAD will be carried out on Friday 6th of March. In Shkoder, Albania, one intensive full day ParkPAD session will be carried out on Thursday 5th of March. This combined session aims to make the most of having all the parties and the ParkPAD assessor in attendance. With parking management being relatively new to the Albanian mobility context, plotting the current state of affairs shouldn’t be a time-intensive process. Working on an action plan on the other hand, will be a very interesting exercise both in term of testing the consortium as well as for local stakeholders and policymakers.  Reggio Emilia, Freiburg and Krakow are carrying out their second audit session in the same week, bringing together all stakeholders around the findings of the first meeting and working towards a plan of concrete parking management actions.