Smart Urban Parking App
A smart application for managing parking in crowded cities, designed to reduce the time spent searching for available spots and to ease traffic congestion and pollution in urban areas.
2024
Framework
UX/UI Course at Shenkar
Project Type
Mobile App
Partners
Group Project with Dana Antonovich andVioleta Niyazov.
My Role: Concept development, user research and collaborative definition of features and UX/UI design.
Project Overview
Main Problem
Finding parking in urban areas is often time-consuming and stressful, especially when drivers are looking for affordable or free options such as street parking.
Existing parking apps mainly focus on paid parking lots or navigation, offering limited real-time information about street availability.
As a result, users waste valuable time circling around, face frustration, and contribute to urban congestion. The challenge was to design a smart, intuitive app that simplifies the search for nearby street parking -providing accurate updates and a smooth user experience that reduces both time and the overload.
Users / Audience
The app is designed for drivers living in or frequently visiting urban areas such as Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan and Givatayim, who face daily challenges finding parking.
Users range from students and young professionals to parents and office workers, all of whom rely on private vehicles for commuting, errands, and leisure.
They need quick access to affordable or free parking, real-time updates on availability, and a simple, intuitive tool that helps them plan trips and reduce time spent searching for a spot.
Branding
Persona
Persona 1: Michael Aharon
Age: 25
Location: Tel Aviv
Status: Single
Occupation: Student at Tel Aviv University, works as a waiter
Hobbies: Music, socializing with friends, reading comics
Daily Challenges:
Michael struggles to find parking when he goes to university or his evening shifts at a restaurant in central Tel Aviv. He loses valuable study and work time searching for a spot, and gets frustrated when he cannot find parking or has to use expensive lots.
How the App Helps Michael:
Receive real-time notifications about available parking spots.
See parking availability near his university and workplace.
Quickly and easily use the app to save time.
Persona 2: Almog Levi
Age: 32
Location: Givatayim
Status: Married, two children aged 2 and 4
Occupation: Accountant
Daily Routine:
Almog drives to her office in Tel Aviv every day and shares childcare duties with her husband, taking the children to and from daycare. On weekends, they enjoy outings with their kids and visiting grandparents in Petah Tikva.
Daily Challenges:
Her main daily challenge is finding parking. There is a shortage of parking spaces near her workplace, and only managers are authorized to park there. She spends an average of 40 minutes every day searching for a spot, which is very frustrating.
How the App Helps Almog:
The app learns Almog’s routine and reserves a parking spot for her at the time she usually arrives at work.
Almog can plan family outings based on parking availability suggested by the app.
The app saves Almog significant time and reduces daily frustration.
Persona 3: Moshe Israeli
Age: 50
Location: Tel Aviv
Occupation: Product Manager at a Tech Company
Daily Challenges:
Since Moshe works in central Tel Aviv, most parking lots and street (blue-and-white) spots are occupied during his working hours. He does not have a reserved parking arrangement through work, which often forces him to spend a long time searching for a spot, causing significant frustration.
How the App Helps Moshe:
Moshe can set up a daily routine in the app, just like Almog and Michael.
When he arrives at work, the app automatically shows him available parking options without any extra effort on his part.
Interviews
Roni, 59, Ramat Gan. Married with 3+ children and a dog. Freelance graphic designer, working from home.
Do you use a private car on a daily basis?
Yes. I go to yoga classes twice a week, to the beach almost every week, hang out with friends, go shopping, sometimes drop my soldier son at the central station, and take my dog to appointments. Everything is by car.On average, how long does it take you to find parking?
About 15–20 minutes.Where do you usually park?
On the street in my neighborhood.On average, how long does it take to reach your destination after finding a parking spot?
10–15 minutes on foot.Do you use public transportation when parking is unavailable?
Mostly only when I need to travel outside the city and know that when I return, there won’t be parking available.Are there locations or times of day when you avoid traveling due to parking difficulties?
I try to avoid traveling during peak hours, around 17:00.What has been your most frustrating parking experience?
I parked in a spot where many others were parked, but it turned out to be illegal, and I received a fine.What solutions do you use when parking is hard to find?
I park in spots where it’s allowed at night, then get up in the morning just to move the car. Or I park far away and, when spots open up near my home, I move the car. Since I work from home, this is my advantage—I can “play the parking game” and secure spots.
Michal, 25, Tel Aviv. Single, owns a dog. Works as a Pilates instructor in central Tel Aviv.
Do you use a private car on a daily basis?
Most of my transportation is by car — I drive to work every day in central Tel Aviv, and also for errands and social activities.On average, how long does it take you to find parking?
About 10–20 minutes.Where do you usually park?
At work — if I’m lucky, I find a blue-and-white (street) spot; otherwise, I park in a paid lot, which costs around 30₪ per day. The parking lot is also relatively far from my workplace.On average, how long does it take you to reach your destination after finding parking?
Around 10–15 minutes walking if I don’t find a close spot.Do you use public transportation when parking is unavailable?
Sometimes, even though I don’t prefer it.What has been your most frustrating parking experience?
I searched for parking for about 15 minutes, finally found a spot and got excited — but then realized I didn’t have the specific residential permit for that Tel Aviv area and had to move the car. Eventually, I gave up and parked in a distant lot.What solutions do you use when you can’t find parking for a long time?
I often just leave home much earlier — there’s a much better chance to find parking at 7 a.m. than at 9. It’s frustrating.If there were an app that alerts you to available parking near your destination, would you use it?
Of course — yesterday if I could. Does something like that exist?
Competitor Analysis
Cello App
Overview:
Cello offers an all-in-one mobility solution — beyond street parking. Users can find parking lots (with discounts), car washes, EV chargers, public transport, and shared scooters.
Differentiation:
Unlike competitors like Pumba (which relies on user cameras to detect free spots), Cello provides multiple real-time mobility options in one platform.
Design Style:
Flat, minimalist, Swiss-inspired interface focused on clarity and quick navigation.
Key Features:
Multi-search: parking, transport, EV chargers, scooters, car washes.
Reward system: earn points for actions → redeem discounts & coupons.
Tailored mainly for drivers, but supports broader mobility needs.
User Goal:
A seamless, smart way to move through the city without parking stress.
Differentiation
Parkly stands out by merging real-time parking data, smart sensors and AI-driven insights into one seamless experience.
Unlike competitors that rely solely on user reports, Parkly integrates with city systems and uses sensor-based detection for maximum accuracy.
Its gamified “Star System” rewards responsible drivers and encourages engagement, while predictive features learn user habits to suggest parking solutions before they even start driving.
Strategy
Our strategy focuses on building an intuitive, data-driven platform that minimizes search time and personalizes parking options.
We aim to expand user acquisition through community partnerships, business collaborations, and eco-conscious innovation- reducing emissions by cutting parking search time.
Continuous updates, AI learning, and real-time feedback loops ensure that Parkly evolves alongside user needs and technological progress.
Information Architecture
User Journey
Wireframes
Visual Presentation
