In an increasingly digital and mobile first world, Cal Poly leverages Offstreet to reduce their reliance on pay stations, improve the guest experience, and provide a better solution for their stakeholders on campus.
Cal Poly implemented Offstreet in 2023 to help solve sponsored guest and event related parking on campus.
Whether they were requesting 50 permits for an event or 1 permit for a guest lecturer, between Transportation and Parking Services (TAPS), departments, and guests, the process was cumbersome.
"We felt a responsibility to provide a solution that was more efficient for both the parkers but also the Departments/Clubs/Colleges that were facilitating their parking" expressed Takuto.
The use of pay station coupon codes required guests to locate and walk to pay stations upon arriving on campus. TAPS frequently received feedback that guests and customers considered the process cumbersome, which threatened to impact the university's reputation and stakeholder relationships.
Takuto described the challenges guests have with pay stations, saying "you have to find and figure out the pay station, sometimes you don't remember what your license plate is and have to go back to your car, and if you can't figure it out, you come back to your car later and have a citation".
Trying to solve their guest parking pain points using an existing vendor felt like "trying to fit a round peg in a square hole" said Takuto. This left them with three options:
With just 10 pay stations to service 8,000 parking spaces across 38 lots, TAPS faced limitations in their ability to serve diverse guest parking needs:
Using Offstreet, TAPS provides their customers with ‘Sponsored Guest’ parking links:
Takuto explained the outcome this streamlined process has had saying "using Offstreet has reduced the constant coordination between Departments and TAPS, freeing up time for both groups".
Using Offstreet has greatly improved the guest experience, creating a more welcoming first impression of the campus.
All 38 lots are configured in Offstreet and have been mapped to the existing zone setup in TAPS enforcement software.
This not only enables TAPS to utilize the entire campus for guest parking, enhancing flexibility but also ensures a seamless information flow between systems.
In an increasingly digital and mobile first world, Cal Poly leverages Offstreet to reduce their reliance on pay stations, improve the guest experience, and provide a better solution for their departments on campus.
While they started with sponsored guests and events, both Cal Poly and Offstreet are excited to continue expanding their partnership.
Looking to improve your event parking process and guest experience? Meet with a team member to see if Offstreet is a good fit for you.
