Han Ximin

ximhan@126.com

IN cooperation with the local health commission, Shenzhen traffic police launched a smart parking app, e约停, at three hospitals yesterday to resolve parking difficulties.

The app, developed by Shenzhen SEZ Construction and Development Group, offers the solution of combining reservations and shared parking.

Drivers can try making reservations for parking on the app after they have made a reservation for medical treatment online via the 健康160 app or the public accounts of the three hospitals, namely Shenzhen Children’s Hospital, Beijing University Shenzhen Hospital and Shenzhen No. 2 People’s Hospital.

The hospitals have designated spots for vehicles with or without reservations. If the parking places are in big demand, the vehicles with reservations will be given priority. Police will limit parking at a turnover of no less than 1:2 based on the reservation time periods. If the parking lots are fully reserved, the app will suggest drivers use public transport.

“The app makes full use of parking resources in the hospitals, provides updates about the parking situation at the hospitals and nearby areas, and chooses the proper means of transport,” said Wang Chao, executive director with Smart Parking Development Co., a subsidiary of Shenzhen SEZ Construction and Development Group.

“It will relieve the parking space shortage at the hospitals, save time for treatment and make full use of public parking lots,” Wang said.

The package will be officially implemented Dec. 23 after a one-week trial.

To make full use of parking resources, the app also advises drivers to choose parking spots at nearby office buildings or department stores.

Taking Shenzhen Children’s Hospital as an example. It has 950 parking spots. If the parking lots have been fully reserved, the app will recommend drivers to park at nearby office buildings, such as Book City CBD Store, Jiangsu Mansion and New World Center. The commercial parking lots will offer discounts or reductions, and display the parking fees on the app. Additionally, it will show the walking distances to the hospital.

Drivers without reservations for medical treatment won’t be eligible for a fee reduction.

Drivers who are visiting patients at the hospitals can make reservations through the WeChat accounts of the Shenzhen police or Shenzhen health commission, and then they can enjoy fare reductions by entering the patient’s medical record number.

On the app, the default time for entering a parking lot is one hour ahead of the reservation for treatment. The default parking duration is three hours. Users can reset or change the treatment time and time period for parking. If the users cancel the treatment, the parking reservations will be automatically canceled. If they decide to use public transport, they need to manually cancel the parking reservations.

Parking difficulties have long been a problem at hospitals due to their limited land resources. The issue also worsens traffic in the areas near hospitals, because drivers have no choice but to park along the roadsides.