Home to over 13,000 students, the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater is an evolving campus with an impressive array of offerings. The university supports over 50 majors and minors, NCAA Division III athletic programs and numerous student organizations.
THE CHALLENGE
Outdated parking meters in poor working conditions were the only way to pay for short-term parking across campus. With temperatures in the teens during the winter months, the meters often failed to operate and students, faculty and visitors struggled to pay for their parking.
Not only did the meters cause headaches for parkers, but UW-Whitewater’s parking department struggled to keep the hardware operational. The university had two staff members who dedicated 40 hours each week to coin collection and meter maintenance. The parking department recognized its lack of efficiency and was in need of a modern parking solution to complement its innovative campus.
THE SOLUTION
What did UW-Whitewater do to find a solution? They turned to the internet. After a quick search for meterless parking solutions, Lisa Miller, Parking Services Internal Operations and Finance at UW-Whitewater, found Passport.
Decreased Operational Costs, Increased Efficiency & Control
Once the university implemented Passport’s mobile parking app, Passport Parking, meters were removed campuswide, creating mobile-pay-only environments for a majority of the school’s parking zones. The 40+ hours per week spent collecting change and repairing hardware was instantly handed back to the parking staff so that they could focus on more impactful tasks, such as enforcement. By paying for parking directly from their smartphones, parkers also save valuable time.
The upgrade in parking technology also gives UW-Whitewater more control over its operations from the backend. The university has the ability to manage parking rates from a single, cloud-based system, allowing for two-hour parking limits in specific lots and four-hour limits in others.
Increased Parking Revenue
The university launched the Passport Parking app in January– just in time for students and faculty to utilize for the new semester. Passport provided UW-Whitewater with flyers to prepare parkers for the digital switch and to help promote the app.
In the first month, UW-Whitewater saw a $2,000 increase in revenue compared to the previous year purely from mobile parking transactions.
“Hands down, going mobile was worth it. It’s the way of the world and everyone should do it.”
– Lisa Miller, Parking Services Internal Operations and Finance at UW-Whitewater
Finding a Partner
When choosing the right mobile pay provider, UW-Whitewater was looking for more than just an innovative solution– the university also wanted to find a dedicated partner.
“My experience [with the Passport team] has been wonderful. Implementation went very smoothly…I couldn’t have asked for a better response time with anything. Passport has made my life a whole lot easier on campus.” – Lisa Miller, UW-Whitewater