A Year of Proposals

I began my career in the parking industry in 1996 and worked my way up through various positions to one of leadership in what was a well-respected privately owned parking company. Those first 20 plus years of my career were years of learning and being mentored by some of the best and most seasoned parking professionals in the industry.

During recent years, I transitioned to another parking management company that was more closely aligned to my professional and personal goals. That decision was one of the hardest career decisions that I ever had to make. But now I see that it was the right one for me and my family. I am enjoying the work with my company. The people that I work with respect and hear my opinion on matters involving our company and initiatives that we, along with other parking management companies, are presented with.

Over my career, and I still have many more years to go I hope, my parking experience has primarily been in the aviation sector of the parking business. Each sector of parking, be it aviation, municipal, commercial, or one of the many others, have unique characteristics that only pertain to them. For me, aviation has been the one that intrigues me and has inspired me the most.

I have seen some very transformative events that have drastically impacted the aviation sector of our industry: Bird Flu, September 11, economic slowdowns, governmental funding issues, and COVID to name a few. These events have each had a dramatic impact on the aviation industry and, as a result, have impacted the parking operations that are at those airports. Some events have escalated changes in aviation parking that were falling behind other parking segments and were much needed to advance aviation parking technology.

Unlike some other sectors, there are a finite number of airports that have paid parking. The likelihood of a new airport being built in the U.S. right now is very unlikely. There are approximately 503 commercial airports in the U.S., but this includes general aviation and other airports that may only have flights certain times of the year. Only about 260 of these airports charge for parking year-round. I know…it is hard to believe that some airports still do not see this as a means to recoup O&M costs for their facilities! 60 or so of those airports manage their own parking operations. Of the remaining 200 airports some self-operate their parking facilities and some contract out the management of the parking and transportation needs at their facilities.

As we fully came out of the pandemic in late 2022 and started 2023, many of us in the industry knew that there would be a flood of RFPs that would be making their way to market. Never did I think that we would see the flood of potential new business that we have seen.

And wow, what a year 2023 was! We had more than 40 aviation RFPs drop. The RFPs that were issued represent about 20% of the total market in this sector and historically we would see about one third of that many requests for proposals in years past.

An examination of the RFPs that were issued shows that the airports are not just going through the motions to satisfy procurement and purchasing department requirements. Aviation facilities are really looking for a service provider that has new and creative ideas. Of the RFPs, over half have made a change from the incumbent operator to a new operator. Another 20% stayed with their previous parking management provider and the remaining are still either finalizing their selection or are still in the early stages of the RFP process. What we have also seen as these RFPs are issued is that airports are more inclined to move towards cashless operations and additional frictionless payment options. The technology advancements that escalated because of the pandemic and the general public fear of cash have greatly expedited this evolution in airports as well as other parking sectors.

In conclusion, I for one am excited to see what the next year brings to the aviation sector of parking! ◆