The announcement that Boston street sweeping operations have once again commenced brings with it its fair share of ups and downs for city residents, especially for those with cars and parking spots.
While the sight of street cleaners rolling through the neighborhood once again signifies that spring is finally in full swing, the underlying paranoia of finding a hefty fine slapped on the windshield of your car stands as one downside plaguing many during this time of the year.
Thankfully — as it is with most first-world problems — there’s an app to help you out.
ParkWise, a community-focused street parking mobile app developed by Boston based StreetinfoTech, will not only help users locate open parking spots, but also alert them to scheduled street sweeping services in the area.
“Everyone knows how frustrating it is when you come home and have to drive around your neighborhood for 30 minutes looking for a parking spot on the street,” said StreetInfoTech CEO Alexander Shvartz in a statement. “ParkWise not only helps you find a parking spot, but it also alerts you of any street cleaning scheduled in your area, which is particularly helpful as we enter the street cleaning season.”
ParkWise, developed to help drivers identify potential parking within the maze of Boston’s street grid, charts out a map containing real-time information regarding both open parking spaces and soon-to-be available spots. Once the user has found somewhere to park, the app notes the location, alerting the driver when street cleaning takes place at that spot.
As part of the app’s community-based framework, the program automatically updates other users when one driver either approaches a potential parking spot or indeed takes the space.
"According to recent surveys, about 30% of traffic in urban areas is created by drivers looking for parking," Shvartz added. "Not only does this waste driver’s time, but it is also a significant contributor to air pollution.”
While there have been a fair amount of mobile parking apps to hit the market, ParkWise complies with city regulations and does not allow users to either hold or sell their parking spot.
“We created an app that is fair and legal that allows the community to work together to help one another. All parking spots are first come, first served,” Shvartz noted.
The app — which covers a wide swath of Boston neighborhoods, as well as neighboring Somerville and Cambridge, is currently free to download both on iOS and Android devices.
