When the transition from one's vehicle to the train or bus line is intuitive and effortless, parking becomes in effect an integral part of mobility and at the service of citizens.
This is the case with the two parking facilities at Pozzuoli Solfatara and Ferrara stations, managed by Metropark of the Italian State Railways Group.
In Ferrara, Metropark built the parking facility at the city's railway station, at the entrance to the city and intended for access into the historic center on the Via Cavour route.
The work began in April 2021 and was completed, as per the assigned schedule, in September 2021. The parking lot is located near the junction of St. James Street, opposite the area dedicated to bike sharing, adjacent to the structure that houses the station's ticket office and waiting room.
There are 137 parking spaces available (including 3 for people with disabilities) arranged in a comb pattern on an area of about 4,300 square meters. The viability is simple but exemplary: 1 entrance gate, 1 exit gate, both with slim Jupiter peripherals and vehicle maneuvering lanes, plus provisions for 4 larger stalls at the two EV charging stations. The automated pay station allows cash or digital payments, and subscription renewal in the absence of dedicated staff.
This is one of about 80 parking facilities managed by Metropark in Italy, all controlled remotely at its control room located in Rome (NOC - Network Operating Center). In the case of Ferrara, the management of rates, stall occupancy, and transits is completely entrusted to JMS management software.
Emphasizing the technological and aesthetic value of the facility, Metropark Operations and Facility Manager Flavio Zampognaro: "It is an efficient mobility project, perfectly integrated into the original site: here technology has an aesthetic value. With this facility we offer commuters and visitors to this city of very high cultural and touristic value the possibility to change vehicles without difficulty, and to continue their journey in an even more sustainable way."
Also deserving a mention are the parking lot facilities, aimed in particular at increasing safety for users and comfort for attendants: a cash desk/pass management room for parking attendants, a new lighting system, 2 Agla panels serving infomobility, the video surveillance system, and the perimeter fence.
The construction of the Ferrara facility was followed by work at the Pozzuoli Solfatara station level parking lot. The facility was completely renovated in early 2022, and today offers 126 parking spaces to the many commuters on the regional route and to travelers visiting local sights: the Campi Flegrei, Pozzuoli's Solfatara, the archaeological site of Cumae (600 B.C.), Lake Avernus, and the Flavian Amphitheater.
The modernization of the parking lot was completed while respecting the environmental and aesthetic constraints of the site.
As in the case of Ferrara, access to the parking lot is linear: 1 entrance gate, 1 exit gate, both with Jupiter slim peripherals and vehicle maneuvering lanes, Agla variable message signs, and an area dedicated to the automatic pay station (APS). The cashier allows cash or digital payments, and subscription renewal; the IT hardware component of the system is concentrated in a technology cabinet, which ensures 24/7 operation of the system.
Comments HUB Italy General Manager Franco Oliva: "For HUB, the Metropark realizations in Pozzuoli and Ferrara are exemplary multi-vehicle interchange projects, and proof that parking technology not only simplifies the management of car flows but paradoxically allows them to be used less and better. A technologically advanced parking lot is a safe and efficient parking lot."
Ferrara and Pozzuoli are projects of undoubted functional value and aesthetic merit: good job, HUB Italia!
