Supporting Sustainability and Greener Infrastructure with Smart Parking Technology
Reducing Emissions
Going Beyond Technology
Supporting Sustainable Projects
Enabling Data-Driven Planning
Reducing Materials and Waste
Next Steps
From reducing carbon emissions to cutting back on wasted energy, sustainability has become a driving force in how airports, hospitals, casinos, and municipalities approach their infrastructure upgrades. For many forward-thinking organizations, incorporating smart technologies is key to achieving their environmental goals, with parking infrastructure being a key area for improvement.
Modern parking guidance systems like the Park Assist Solution by TKH Security are doing so much more than streamlining the search for available spaces. They’re playing a vital role in helping operators meet ambitious sustainability benchmarks, reduce their carbon footprint, and contribute to a better experience for people and the planet alike. And when combined with additional measures like EV charging stations, sustainable construction practices, efficient layouts, solar energy, and green landscaping, parking facilities can become leaders in advancing environmental responsibility.
Less Time Spent Searching = Fewer Emissions
At the heart of every Park Assist Solution installation is a commitment to helping drivers find available parking faster and more efficiently. By guiding them directly to open spaces using green and red lights above the driving lane on the ceiling and clear digital signage, the system eliminates the need for aimless circling and searching. This small shift in behavior can have major environmental impacts.
According to a detailed analysis, drivers in a typical parking management system equipped facility save up to 5 minutes each time they park. That seemingly modest time savings adds up quickly. At Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT), for example, these time savings are part of a larger, airport-wide investment in smart infrastructure designed to improve efficiency and reduce environmental impact. Across tens of thousands of daily parking events, in garages with the Park Assist Solution, those minutes saved behind the wheel translate to significant reductions in fuel consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, and vehicle wear and tear.
“The average customer using parking management technology saw fuel usage cut by more than 45,000 gallons annually,” stated Jeff Sparrow, Director of Sales, North America. “With a corresponding reduction of over 400 metric tons of CO₂ emissions, this savings is equivalent to removing nearly 100 passenger vehicles from the road each year.”
These benefits aren’t going unnoticed by drivers. In a recent article, one satisfied traveler Laura Bayzle shared how spotting a green light above an open parking space completely changed the mood of her airport experience and transformed what’s often a stressful start into a seamless one. In her words, “That green light literally gave me a green light to relax.” In her piece, “The Green Light That Changed My Whole Travel Mood,” she goes on to highlight both the emotional and environmental value of intuitive technology that simply works.
“Fewer minutes spent circling means less fuel burned and fewer emissions,” points out Bayzle. “It’s an example of infrastructure that quietly solves an everyday problem and is a win-win-win. All from a little green light.”
Going Beyond Technology with Holistic Sustainability Practices
While smart parking guidance technology makes a significant impact, sustainability goes far beyond reducing time spent circling a garage. Many parking facilities are going the extra mile by incorporating additional design features and operational strategies that work hand-in-hand with parking guidance systems, including:
- EV Charging Stations: Ensure facilities are prepared for the steady growth of electric vehicles while reducing reliance on fossil fuels
- Efficient Layouts and Wayfinding Signage: Minimize confusion, speed up time to park, and further reduce vehicle idling
- Sustainable Building Materials: Decrease embodied carbon in new construction projects by utilizing materials like precast concrete and timber
- Solar Energy Integration: Allows garages to offset electricity usage and power lighting, ventilation, or even EV chargers
- Green Landscaping Practices: Manage potential heat island effects, improve stormwater management, and enhance air quality
- Insulation for Attached Garages: Protect adjacent buildings from unwanted heat transfer and improve overall energy efficiency
Together, these measures create facilities that are designed to give back to their communities and the environment rather than simply functional.
Supporting Envision-Certified Projects
The impact of parking guidance technology on environmental performance isn’t just theoretical. It’s playing out in real-world infrastructure projects nationwide.
A prime example is the Park Economy 3 expansion project at Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU), which recently earned Envision Platinum certification, the highest sustainability honor awarded by the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure. RDU’s new 6,900-space garage includes the Park Assist Solution technology, helping the airport exceed its goals for improving energy efficiency, reducing emissions, and increasing traveler convenience.
The Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure created The Envision Sustainable Infrastructure Framework as a rigorous rating system that evaluates infrastructure across five categories: Quality of Life, Leadership, Resource Allocation, Natural World, and Climate & Resilience. Smart parking guidance supports multiple areas of this framework by reducing idle time, improving air quality, minimizing the urban heat island effect through faster turnover, and enabling more adaptive, data-driven operations.
Enabling More Sustainable Planning with Data
One of the most powerful aspects of the Park Assist Solution platform is its ability to generate rich, actionable data. From monitoring peak occupancy and turnover rates to identifying underutilized areas, the system’s analytics tools empower parking garage operators to optimize how their facilities are used.
This data-driven approach can inform everything from efficient traffic flow to making the most of existing parking facilities and avoiding the need to build new ones. By giving operators a clearer picture of real demand, the system helps avoid overbuilding and supports smarter land use in urban environments.
Reducing Maintenance and Resource Waste
Smart parking guidance technology also helps to reduce the wear and tear on both vehicles and infrastructure. Less circling means fewer unnecessary miles driven, which translates to less frequent tire replacements, oil changes, and brake servicing for the average car. It also lessens the strain on roadways and garage surfaces, reducing the frequency of costly maintenance and materials needed for repairs.
Additionally, facilities built with durable, sustainable materials and equipped with energy-efficient lighting and ventilation systems can extend facility lifespans even further, reducing the long-term need for additional high-carbon construction materials like concrete and steel.
In this way, parking becomes a key component of a holistic strategy for minimizing resource consumption, extending the lifecycle of existing assets, and overall sustainable facility management.
Ready for a More Sustainable Parking Operation?
As cities and private operators alike pursue greener infrastructure, it’s often the invisible efficiencies (the ones baked into day-to-day operations) that make the biggest difference over time.
“Parking guidance may not be the flashiest sustainability initiative, but its compounding benefits across energy, emissions, maintenance, and planning are valuable and lasting. And when paired with EV infrastructure, renewable energy, sustainable construction practices, and green landscape design, garages can evolve into truly sustainable assets that support both people and the planet,” said Sparrow.
The Park Assist Solution is helping organizations across the globe achieve their environmental goals while enhancing the parking experience for drivers. Whether as part of an Envision-certified development or a broader sustainability strategy, this technology continues to prove that smart infrastructure can be both people-centric and planet-friendly.
Back to all news
