Bosch and APCOA have announced plans to expand the use of automated valet parking technology in Germany. The technology, which enables contactless and cashless parking without a ticket, will be installed in 15 parking garages in cities such as Hamburg, Berlin, Cologne, Frankfurt, and Munich. This move follows the approval of driverless SAE Level 4 parking for commercial use at Stuttgart airport, one of the few locations in the world to have passed the necessary legislation for such systems.
The APCOA FLOW platform will be used to implement the technology, and Bosch’s modular system will enable the quick expansion of parking spaces featuring the technology up to 200 bays at each location. The agreement between Bosch and APCOA is seen as the first step towards a worldwide market launch.
Dr. Markus Heyn, member of the Bosch board of management and chairman of the Mobility Solutions business sector, stated, “We will expand the number of such parking spaces based on the expected ramp-up of vehicles featuring automated valet parking. Our experience with charge spots for electric vehicles shows us how important it is for infrastructure growth to keep pace with the technology. Together with our partner APCOA, we are now making sure that this will be the case for automated valet parking.”
Frank van der Sant, a member of the board of management and chief commercial officer of APCOA PARKING Group, added, “With the automated valet parking solution, we can offer our parking customers a whole new level of convenience. This function is especially advantageous at locations where time is an issue, such as airports, concert halls, event locations, and trade fair locations.”
The partnership between Bosch, Mercedes-Benz, and APCOA first made the highly automated and driverless parking service available at Stuttgart airport in 2020, and the plan is to roll out the technology to other countries as laws are passed.
