Economics of Digitalization of Public Roadside Parking in City Centers

The article presents several key objectives of the study: (i) to examine the financial sustainability of the public roadside parking system on public streets, (ii) to assess the potential investment in public roadside parking in comparison with the digitalization processes of public parking, (iii) to analyze and estimate the total life-cycle costs of the digitalization process of public parking, and (iv) to evaluate, based on the findings of previous studies, the needs and funding options for the digitalization of public parking in the Republic of Croatia. The financial analysis of the current public roadside parking system was conducted using a survey method, which included financial data from 39 parking areas managed by public utility companies. The study encompasses a total of 96,296 public parking spaces across the Republic of Croatia. The results indicate that the non-digitalized public roadside parking system in Croatia achieves a positive operating margin (EBITDA) with an average of €0.97 per parking space per day and an average operating profit of 49.42%. In a scenario involving digitalization for enhanced surveillance of parking fee payments, the average EBITDA could range from €1.01 to €1.70 per parking space per day, depending on an anticipated revenue increase from public parking services ranging between 20% and 60%. However, the study is limited in its representativeness due to the sample size of digitalization projects, the type of sensor infrastructure installed in parking spaces, and the variation in revenue increases from public parking services facilitated by the active Scan-a-Car system. Despite these limitations, the study makes significant scientific contributions by: (i) providing a comprehensive and well-substantiated description of the profitability of public roadside parking in the Republic of Croatia, (ii) establishing benchmark values for digitalization costs that enable public roadside parking providers to make more informed and reliable decisions regarding the digitalization of parking, (iii) highlighting the necessity for systematic monitoring of the financial and socio-economic impacts of the digitalization process, and (iv) serving as a foundation for broader and more in-depth exploration in future research endeavors.