The hunt for parking in Studio City is going high-tech, thanks to a smartphone application unveiled Wednesday that allows Ventura Boulevard motorists to scope out curbside spaces in the area.
Using wireless sensors implanted under the roadway, the "Parker" app directs drivers to available metered parking spots along Ventura Boulevard between Laurel Canyon Boulevard and Whitsett Avenue, on nearby side streets and at a 200-space public parking garage at 12225 Ventura Blvd.
The app also displays prices and gives motorists the option of using their smart-phones to pay the fee by credit card. And there's even a timer function to alert drivers when it's time to add more to the meter.
The app was developed by San Francisco-based Streetline, and can be downloaded on iPhone or Android-powered cellphones. The service launched in Hollywood in December, and was unveiled Wednesday in Studio City at a news conference held by City Councilman Paul Krekorian.
"We have worked hard to integrate innovative new ideas and technologies to make government more effective and cost-efficient," he said.
The app is currently free. If Streetline begins charging for the app, the city would receive a 20
percent share of the revenue, Krekorian said.Local reaction to the app ranged from skeptical to curious.
Anthony Moreno, 35, of Burbank, talked about the difficulty of finding a parking space in the popular Studio City area, particularly on a weekend.
"You see a spot, circle and come back, and have already lost it to someone else," he said. The Parker app would "be useful in an area that you're not familiar with."
Tim Hill, 43, of Sherman Oaks, tested out the app at the request of the Daily News and found it "hard to understand how to use."
He also worried the app is merely a Band-Aid solution to the city's lack of public transportation.
"I applaud them for the effort," he said. "But if they think this is a permanent fix, they're way off."
But Donald Shoup, an urban planning professor at UCLA, was excited about the potential uses for parking applications.
"One of the most valuable things (about apps like these) is that before you go, you can see what the pricing is," said Shoup, who conducted a 2007 study which found that motorists spent an average of 3.3 minutes looking for a parking spot in Westwood.
Source: http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_18091357?source=rss
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