Hamburg is set to introduce camera cars that will automatically detect illegal parking, such as on sidewalks or in second rows. The cars will also be able to determine whether a vehicle is parked legally or illegally in areas with parking management. Currently, around 140 employees of the state-owned company Verkehr are responsible for monitoring parking violations on foot. However, the introduction of camera cars is expected to make their work easier. The Hamburg Authority for Transport and Mobility Transition plans to use the Scan Cars from French company Egis by 2024. The Scan Cars have a camera that can automatically detect illegal parking and can also determine whether a vehicle is parked legally or illegally in areas with parking management.
The system works by cross-referencing a database that contains information about resident parking permits. Sascha Ruja, the CEO of Egis, presented his experience with similar projects in Paris and Amsterdam at a recent transport conference in Hamburg. Since 2018, Egis has been operating a monitoring system in Paris that includes several motorized camera units and 17 vehicles equipped with cameras. The measures implemented have already led to a measurable improvement in the traffic situation. “First, revenues were significantly increased, which was very beneficial for the city. Second, there were no free parking spaces for a long time,” said Ruja. “By introducing monitoring, we were able to increase parking space by ten percent. And we managed to reduce traffic overall.”
The use of such scan vehicles in Germany requires a legal basis at the federal level. The Hamburg transport authority submitted a legislative proposal last year, which was positively received by the state transport ministries. According to Dennis Krämer, the authority hopes to be able to use the Scan Cars soon. “We hope to have the appropriate legal basis to allow the vehicles to operate in the first half of 2024 in Hamburg,” he said. With the introduction of camera cars, Hamburg hopes to reduce illegal parking and improve traffic flow in the city.
