On the Paris parking case

How do people really park in Paris? Captur uses AI to address the debate threatening the future of micromobility in Paris.

paris heat map
78%
of rides end with a safe parking
80%
of bad parking can be attributed to insufficient signage or lack of suitable parking spots
30
the number of parking scenarios Captur can detect
CLIENT
INDUSTRY
Micromobility
LOCATION
Paris

Moving cities into a sustainable future

With an estimated 20 million users in Europe alone, micromobility is revolutionising transportation in cities.

Micromobility is already paving the way for decarbonised cities, with clear environmental and social benefits. However, as new modes of transport gain popularity, more vehicles on the road lead to greater safety risks. At Captur, we want to dig into the data to see just how well, or poorly, people park.

Benefits:

  • Environmental impact on urban air quality and decarbonisation
  • Reduction of traffic and reduced burden on public transport in cities and towns
  • Efficient and accessible transportation

Challenges:

  • Cities must evolve infrastructure to accommodate new modes of transportation
  • Vehicles cluttering streets and causing potential hazards for road users
  • Requires behaviour change of shifting away from cars and taxis in city centres

Keeping Paris the 15 minute city

The future of micromobility in Paris has been debated over the last few months, with concerns around eScooters and eBikes cluttering the streets. Captur wants to ensure the safe adoption of micromobility by utilising AI to give riders feedback on their parking in real-time and to monitor potential high risk areas in the city.

Parking in Paris

Distribution of rider parking across the city.

Parking Assessment Split By European Cities

Parisians park better

According to our data, Parisians tend to park better (according to local restrictions) than many other European cities including Copenhagen, Rome and Madrid.

API + SDK

User guidance

Our API returns a decision and detailed feedback based on the end-of-ride image. Our SDK provides real-time feedback to riders.

80% of bad parking in Paris is due to insufficient signage or a lack of sufficient parking spots

Over a 4 month period, we identified areas of unsafe parking in Paris and what might be the cause of bad parking - riders or infastructure?

Paris parking heat map

Our data is gathered from micromobilty companies operating in Paris between October 2022 and February 2023.

Hot Spots: We analysed patterns of bad parking across Paris and detected a noticeable hotspot outside of city hall!

Trends

What are the wins and challenges of micromobility in Paris?

Bad Parking:

The most frequent reasons for bad parking are when Parisians...

  • Park next to cars or other vehicles
  • Park in the road
  • Park outside of designated bays

Good Parking:

Parisians are relatively good at

  • Parking in the bay (when clearly marked)
  • or in bike racks
  • Attempting to park in busy bays

Insufficient Information:

Some photos are just not good enough!

  • Photos taken too close up to the scooter
  • Blurry or dark photos
  • No scooter visible in the photo

Recommendations

  1. install clear signage next to parking bays
  2. provide guidance to riders before they finish parking
  3. expand capacity and number of parking bays in high risk areas

AI-Detection

Our models work across multiple parking regulations, including free floating and mandatory parking zones, and provide feedback on parking within 3 seconds.

Hot Spots: We analysed patterns of bad parking across Paris and detected a noticeable hotspot outside of city hall!

Trends

What are the wins and challenges of micromobility in Paris?

Bad Parking:

The most frequent reasons for bad parking are when Parisians...

  • Park next to cars or other vehicles
  • Park in the road
  • Park outside of designated bays

Good Parking:

Parisians are relatively good at

  • Parking in the bay (when clearly marked)
  • or in bike racks
  • Attempting to park in busy bays

Insufficient Information:

Some photos are just not good enough!

  • Photos taken too close up to the scooter
  • Blurry or dark photos
  • No scooter visible in the photo

Recommendations

  1. install clear signage next to parking bays
  2. provide guidance to riders before they finish parking
  3. expand capacity and number of parking bays in high risk areas

AI-Detection

Our models work across multiple parking regulations, including free floating and mandatory parking zones, and provide feedback on parking within 3 seconds.

Captur can detect over 30 different parking scenarios

Here a just a couple examples our parking scenarios we can detect:

Conclusion

In Paris, most riders park responsibly. However, a joint effort is needed to address higher risk hotspots.