Planning & policy
Good parking starts with a plan and a policy, not with a product.
The kerb is some of the most valuable public land a municipality holds. Its value comes from how it is used, not from the fee charged for it. Planning decides that use.
Our consulting work
What we do for a municipality before anything is installed.
Parking studies
Occupancy, stay length, turnover and compliance, measured by time of day and day of week. We find where pressure is and where it is moving.
Bay-level kerb inventory
A surveyed map of every bay, restriction, loading area and accessible bay. The city owns it. For many cities it is the first complete record they have.
Parking strategy and master plan
Objectives agreed with the city, a phased programme, and the measures that show if the programme is working.
Kerb management policy
Who uses each part of the kerb, when, and for how long. Zones, maximum stays, loading windows, resident and business permits.
Enforcement and appeals policy
Grace periods, evidence standards, notice process, waivers and appeals. Fair to the motorist, and defensible for the city.
Structured parking business cases
Where and when a multi-storey car park is justified, with the demand evidence to support an investment decision.
The kerb hierarchy
Not every use of the kerb has the same priority.
Many cities now allocate kerb space by priority. Safety and access come first. Long-stay storage of vehicles comes last. We help the city agree this order street by street, because a commercial frontage and a residential street need different rules.
A clear hierarchy also makes policy easier to explain. Each restriction has a reason that a resident or a merchant can understand.
- Safety and movement Junctions, crossings, sight lines, bus stops
- Accessible parking Bays kept usable for those who need them
- Loading and servicing Deliveries at the hours a street needs them
- Short-stay customers Shops, clinics, restaurants, services
- Residents Predictable access near home
- Long stays Moved to longer-stay areas and car parks
Global practice, adapted for Oman
Six policy principles we bring to every city.
These principles are not new. Cities in Europe, North America and Asia use them. We adapt each one to Omani law, Omani communities and Gulf conditions.
01
Target occupancy, not full streets
A full street means drivers circle. Aim for about one free bay on each block face, and set time limits to reach it.
02
Rules by demand, not one rule everywhere
Busy commercial streets need shorter stays than quiet ones. Rules change by zone and by time of day.
03
Certain detection, moderate penalties
Behaviour changes with the chance of detection, not with the size of the fine. A credible rule causes fewer violations, not more notices.
04
Fairness designed in
Grace periods, clear signs in Arabic and English, evidence on every notice, and an appeals path that suspends enforcement while it is open.
05
Manage first, then build
Management is the cheapest capacity a city has. Its data then shows where structured parking is truly needed.
06
Review with evidence
Policy is not set once. We review it with the city at regular intervals, using data the city owns.
The capital argument
The cheapest capacity a city has is the capacity it already owns.
Before any of these, there is the kerb the city already has. A bay that serves eight vehicles a day instead of three does the work of nearly three bays. No land is bought and nothing is built.
This does not replace structured parking. In some places demand is more than turnover can absorb. It sets the order: manage the kerb first, then build with evidence.
The city sets policy
We give the city the evidence, and we make its rules work on the street.
Tariffs, charged hours, maximum stays and permit classes are policy. They belong to the city. Our job is to give the city the evidence to set them, and then to make each rule true on the street, every bay, every hour.
A street average cannot enforce a street rule. A maximum stay, a turnover figure and a fair notice all depend on the individual bay. That is why we plan and measure at bay level.
What the city keeps
The record belongs to the municipality.
The data
All parking, transaction, occupancy and enforcement data belongs to the city for the full term. The city can export it at any time.
The inventory
A surveyed, bay-level map of the managed estate, owned by the city and kept current.
The rules
Tariffs, charged periods, maximum stays, permit classes and grace periods are settings, not software projects. The city changes them, and the street follows.
The public case is not better enforcement. It is a space that is there when somebody needs one.
Start with a parking study
A short study shows what your kerb does today and what policy can change. It is the right first step, whatever comes next.
Talk to us