Making drivers aware of the precise amount of search time required to find parking near their destination, and showing them the optimal route to reduce it, dramatically reduces traffic congestion. Up to 30% of congestion stems from traffic related to parking searches. Contrasting the search time for on-street parking with the distance to the nearest garage or off-street lot reduces the city’s traffic congestion and the number of cars on the streets. It also means more cars in garages and off-street lots, since drivers are made aware of facilities at and around their destination.
FIND works by combining an empirical (“Google Cars”) and a statistical approach (10+ data sources). This allows us to guide drivers and show them the best prospects for finding a free parking spot down to the specific street level. The data sources we use and the way we combine them is our “secret sauce”. But we can say that our accuracy levels are similar to those of physical sensors, without requiring any hardware installation.
Our interfaces display only statistically valid data gained from actual measured outcomes. We show estimates in certain instances, and these are always marked as such. In 2017 we launched our FIND services in Europe.
