New technologies making it easier to park
Shanghai government is using more digital technologies, including 5G, big data and artificial intelligence, to improve traffic in the city.
Parking is difficult because of the imbalance between cars and parking spaces. To solve the problem, the traffic authority introduced the Shanghai Parking app, which covers 4,700 parking lots so far and provides services such as sharing parking lots at shopping centers at night, making a parking appointment at hospitals, paying the fee afterward and parking at traffic hubs such as airports and train stations.
Most old communities in Shanghai, especially those built before 2000, have limited parking space. A neighborhood in Wujiaochang area in Yangpu District, for example, has around 300 parking spaces but more than 1,000 residents.
Now the government is letting shopping centers share their parking lots with surrounding neighborhoods at night when more spaces are available. Citizens can use the app to park in those shopping centers.
The Shanghai Parking app helps with parking at shopping centers at night, hospitals and traffic hubs such as airports and train stations.
Drivers can park at Xinhua Hospital by making an appointment via the Shanghai Parking app.
Parking is also difficult at hospitals but people can use the app to reserve parking in advance.
So far, two hospitals are covered by the app — Xinhua Hospital and Ruijin Hospital — and the government is extending the service to other major hospitals.
Shanghai’s buses and bus stations are also making more use of digital technologies. As many as 50 percent of buses in the city are equipped with a payment device that can accept cash, swipe card or scan QR code. In the past this required three devices to meet different payment methods.
Most buses and bus stations are equipped with sensors and sensing devices which can collect a bus’ real-time position and condition. Bus stations can also predict the arrival time of the next bus with an accuracy rate of up to 97 percent.
A screen at a bus station shows when the next buses are due to arrive.
