HDB to trial smart parking system at Punggol Northshore BTO flats

STARTING Jan 4, 2021, Singapore's Housing and Development Board (HDB) will conduct a trial of a smart parking system at Punggol Northshore.

This system, Parking@HDB, will be the latest addition to the suite of smart features in the waterfront district, where smart-enabled Build-To-Order (BTO) flats have just been completed.

For a start, the trial will be carried out at one car park, PL80, said HDB in a press statement on Wednesday.

PL80 has 1,000 lots, serving the flat owners of smart-enabled housing precincts Northshore Residences I and II. Both precincts span a total of 12 residential blocks, with 1,402 flats.

Among the first four features to be tested is the seamless entry and exit. The car park will not have gantry barriers; instead, vehicle plates are registered via cameras.

In-app notifications will also be included in the trial. Motorists who park short term will receive these alerts in real time for the start and end of parking sessions, and on parking charges incurred.

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Those who park in an unauthorised lot will receive an automated alert informing them to shift their vehicles, if they have downloaded the app. They will face a fine if they do not remove their vehicles. Smart cameras are installed in the car park to detect motorists who park illegally.

Also to be trialled is the option to pay parking fees with credit or debit cards through the Parking@HDB app.

Parking charges will be automatically deducted when a vehicle exits, without the need for motorists to manually activate the app. This means they do not need to insert cash cards into the in-vehicle unit or worry about insufficient funds.

Moreover, the trial will include overhead colour-coded light indicators which signal lot availability.

Other features will be introduced progressively, HDB said. For instance, based on the data collected on car-park usage, the system will automatically allocate lots to meet varying demands on a real-time basis.

Motorists who download and use the Parking@HDB app can park for free for their first three sessions at PL80.

HDB will later extend the trial to other car parks in the Northshore district in tandem with the completion of the BTO developments.

Residents and motorists are welcome to submit their feedback with HDB. Based on the trial's results and feedback, the statutory board will then explore the feasibility of implementing the smart parking system beyond Punggol Northshore.

HDB on Wednesday also announced that Northshore Residences I and II have been completed.

About 85 per cent, or 1,192, of homeowners at the two BTO projects have collected their keys as at Dec 14.

These flats are equipped with smart distribution boards and smart sockets, which help residents monitor their energy consumption, including for specific home appliances.

These built-in fittings also enable homeowners to more easily adopt smart home solutions and applications developed by commercial companies. In other words, any appliance - lights, fans or coffee makers - that is connected to a power source can be controlled with a mobile app.

The smart distribution board replaces the conventional distribution board in HDB flats.

Beyond the flat, residents can also look forward to more reliable estate services. Sensors will monitor and issue alerts when the maintenance of common amenities such as lights and lifts is required.

Estate management is expected to be more efficient as well, given new technologies such as smart lighting at common areas that adjust lighting levels based on human traffic patterns.

In addition, in planning and designing the Punggol Northshore, HDB carried out environmental modelling to simulate the interaction of environmental factors such as wind flow and shadow casting. More greenery was thus planted in potential hot spots to lower the ambient temperature, for instance.

"The completion of the first smart precincts in Punggol Northshore is a major milestone in HDB's smart journey which started in 2014," said the housing authority's chief executive officer Cheong Koon Hean.

The two precincts are the first batch of smart-enabled BTO flats to be rolled out by HDB.

"As HDB enters its seventh decade, it will continue to tap on smart solutions and adopt bold ideas to create the best possible homes for Singaporeans," Dr Cheong added.

Punggol Northshore is the country's first public housing district to test smart technologies right from the design stage, to enhance the planning, design and maintenance of HDB estates.