Parking Spots Could One Day Be Found Via Cell Phone

In the near future, info about available parking spots could be displayed on street signs or sent to any phone with Internet capability, if New York follows the lead of San Francisco, which is testing the program. The new technology relies on embedded-in-the-pavement wireless sensors that detect the presence of a vehicle. The Sun reports that Councilman John Liu is pushing for it, but Bloomberg is concerned that it will cause reckless competition for parking spots: "We don't want people to start speeding and running past red lights." That would be unthinkable.

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By John Del Signore in News on July 16, 2008 10:10 AM

Comments [rss]

Art Vandelay

Just what we need -- people cruising around looking at their cellphones, then rocketing to where the phone tells them there's a spot. Terrible idea.

babyhitler

this is stupid cause of logistics. If there is a parking space it'll be occupied in a few seconds by idle cars anyway. Suppose ten different cars get the same message for one spot, they all race to get there only to see that someone coming off the main road has just opportunistically taken the spot. DUMB.

EricRoberts

I'm with the rest of ya. Why spend money on something that would surely make people drive like maniacs through small neighborhood streets. I'm sure it works fine in a city like SF where the population density is much lower and homes often have garages.

schadenfreudian mensch

Unlike San Fran we get snow. What happens then when the snow blocks the sensors?

drewo

Sounds like another contribution to car chaos.

Wouldn't it just be easier to ban automobiles from the city core?

fishfryin

more importantly, who gives a $hit?? why spend money and time doing something completely extraneous to benefit lazy people of means driving into the city??