License Plate Recognition Parking Solution Arrives in Haapsalu

Snabb introduced a new number plate recognition parking solution in the Haapsalu Kaubamaja parking lot, which is already used by several major shopping and sports centers in both Tallinn and Tartu. This is the city’s first fully automated open parking area, where the start time of vehicle parking is recorded by cameras.

Starting today, parking in the Haapsalu department store parking lot will be organized by Snabb OÜ instead of the previous Europark. “The launch of the new system means that nothing much will change for the driver,” said Snabb founder and CEO Kustas Kõiv.

The biggest change, however, is that you no longer have to put a parking meter on your car when you go to the store. Snabb installed several license plate recognition cameras on the facade of the department store that monitor the entrances to the parking lot. “When you drove in, it recorded when you arrived, and the free parking time started,” explained Kõiv.

However, the fine receipt is written out manually. “It is not possible to do this automatically, as the Estonian Transport Board’s speed cameras do, in Estonia at the moment. Technically it could be done, but a private company cannot obtain the car owners’ contacts from the register,” stated Kõiv.

So, a parking controller will still be moving around the parking lot, looking at the license plate numbers of the vehicles with a smartphone. “He can see what time each car entered. Essentially, the controller is given a green or red signal that indicates whether the car has been in the parking lot for less than or more than two hours,” said Kõiv. A car with a red signal will receive a fine from the parking attendant. In Haapsalu, the fine for exceeding the parking time is 20 euros.

“We have all the cameras set up, people have been instructed,” said Raimond Lunev, head of Haapsalu Coop, to Lääne Elu on Tuesday.

The parking system, which is now also used in Haapsalu, was invented by Snabb under the pressure of circumstances. According to Kõiv, more than half of the fines are received because the parking meter is forgotten. “The customer who receives a fine leaves with a negative emotion; the institution where the parking is done also gets a negative reputation, the parking operator is the only one who benefits,” Kõiv stated.

Snabb came to the market with the license plate recognition system precisely to eliminate cases of forgetting the parking meter. “We don’t earn as much in fines, but the situation is calmer. When fines come, they are for the right reason,” said Kõiv.

Snabb launched its new system about a year ago in Tallinn’s Järve center, then in the Ülemiste center. “Now others are also working on it. In the Kristiine center, a competitor is currently testing a similar system,” said Kõiv.

The new parking lot at the Haapsalu department store has a total of 116 spaces. Lunev said that Europark, which had previously organized parking, was replaced by Snabb primarily because Coop could not receive data from Europark. Therefore, Lunev has no idea how many fines have been issued in the department store’s parking lot.

“Now we can see in real time how many cars have entered the parking lot, how many of them have parked for, for example, 10 minutes, how many for half an hour. And we can also see how many have exceeded the allowed parking time,” said Lunev.

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