“We expect parking businesses to get more conscious about measuring the true impact of their operations on the environment and define targeted strategies to continuously reduce their carbon footprint. We would see investments in precise measurement and audit tools, IoT sensors, and environmental impact analytics. We would see rapid movement towards building sustainable parking structures, with use of innovative energy-saving building materials from pavement to roof, and green practices for repairs and maintenance. Operations will go fully digital, operating completely paperless, minimizing the hardware technology footprint in the garage, reducing e-waste, and dynamically optimizing traffic movement patterns to reduce energy wastages due to congestions.”

“Green practices that will enjoy continued growth include the foundational factor of pricing on-street parking appropriately vis-à-vis off-street options to reduce vehicle idling, block circling, and overall traffic congestion—along with solar panel deployments, energy efficient lighting installations, the careful reduction of chlorides in snow and ice control protocols, enhanced landscaping and drainage for parking facilities, and multimodal transportation hub developments that invest in pedestrian and bicycle amenities.”

“In the near future, I can see more of the population inching towards shared ownership of vehicles/means of transportation, potentially reducing individual vehicle ownership numbers. This trend is prevalent in denser regions of the country already due to the ancillary costs of owning a vehicle, including the cost of parking spaces and insurance among others.”

“Other “green” practices we can expect to see more of in the next five years relate to elements that make it easier to choose non-single occupancy vehicles for every trip. These include a focus on creating and improving infrastructure, increasing connectivity between destinations, adding more mobility options, making it easier to find and reserve spaces, plan routes and pay for multimodal trips, and honing marketing to inspire people to make a difference by trying something new.”

“Bicycle amenities and infrastructure will continue to be another key green practice to support growth and meet sustainability goals. Providing bicycle resource centers, shower facilities, and protected shelters encourage year-round bicycling. Investing in infrastructure, such as protected bicycle lanes, will make the commute for bicyclist safer as well.”

“The parking industry is getting thrifty, and shared parking agreements are becoming increasingly common as an opportunity to leverage parking supply during otherwise underutilized times. Rather than buying or building new, it is most sustainable to use existing resources. By maximizing the use of preexisting parking, the energy output and carbon emissions associated with building new parking is avoided altogether. Shared parking is both “green” for the environment and for your budget.”

“In the next five years, reducing Vehicle Minutes Traveled (VMTs) will be a tangible “green” initiative. Regardless of fuel type, every minute a car is running it is consuming energy. In response, a growing number of cities are embracing comprehensive approaches to technology platforms that look at all parking space types (on-street, garages, and lots) and provide integrated guidance to available parking in real-time thereby reducing congestion and emissions.”

“Through the use of ground-based battery storage, renewable generation (such as rooftop solar PV), and integration of Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) technologies from the increasing number of EVs, parking facilities are uniquely equipped to evolving into a source of energy. This will essentially turn a parking structure into a giant battery that can feed power back into the local (micro) grid and make it possible for parking facilities to power nearby buildings during outages, natural disasters or during periods of peak power demand when supply is strained. The result will be increased environmental resiliency and reduction of the overall cost and environmental footprint of electricity.”

“Promoting and incentivizing alternative transportation modes will continue to significantly impact organizations’ sustainability goals. Whether that’s telecommuting, carpooling, or reducing drive-alone trips, we’ve learned over the last couple of years that when employees change their daily commuting choices, they make a significant impact on their communities.”

“A sustainable alternative is to offer a fully electric end-to-end transportation solution for your constituents. This on-demand mobility reduces the carbon footprint generated by vehicles on the road, while facilitating the movement of people. It is also a viable option as you can use advertisement funds to offset the cost.”

“I think in the next five years we will see an increase in AVSRS (automated parking and retrieval systems) as they can reduce carbon footprint by 83% through:

• No running engines circulating the facility.
• Water efficiency due to the reduced size of the facility.
• Less building materials required.
• Less HVAC and lighting required.
• Average square footage per spaces is 225 SF compared to 350 SF.”

“The mobility industry will continue to grow in ever increasing sustainable technological offerings for multi-modal transportation. Mobility managers will become coordinators and promoters of these sustainable technologies and will deliver urban adoption through propagation of these sustainable technological programs. Parking asset owners will shift with these influences and transition parking assets into sustainable transportation centers for maximum benefit. This combination of technology, mobility management, and repositioning of physical infrastructure assets will bring about new sustainability norms.”

“Expect to see a significant shift from personal transportation methods to shared mobility. Rising costs of living and improved mobility options will push people to choose shared modes of transportation like carsharing, bike sharing, scooters, and public transportation. On top of all the benefits of shared mobility, zero emission transportation options will see a material increase in mode share with technology advancements, autonomous vehicles, and EV infrastructure.”

“Many parking facilities were designed with lush landscapes that provided welcoming experiences for users. It will be challenging to modify existing landscapes, so they do not rely on irrigated lush lawns, annual flowers, and shade trees to make them appear welcoming. The transition space at a parking facilities entrance is significant in forming a customer’s view of a facility, and some facilities were not designed to stand on their own without that landscaping.”