Ford has announced the introduction and availability of its FordPass app, which comes with a feature that will be available even to those that do not drive a vehicle from the Blue Oval.
FordPass, an app that is available in over 160 cities in the United States of America, allows registered users to find a parking spot at their destination, reserve it, and pay for its use.
The entire process works seamlessly through the user’s smartphone, and the customer does not even have to be in a Ford car or to have ever owned one of the Blue Oval’s models to be eligible for the app.
Ford had discovered a lucrative market here, as a Harris Poll found that 34% of U.S. adults questioned are using other methods of transportation because of frustration caused by the search of a parking spot. The same study says that ride-hailing apps are the preferred solution for the described respondents because they do not have to find a parking spot.
According to the quoted Harris Poll, people can waste up to an hour each week searching for parking, which can add up to 56 hours a year if we were to extrapolate the average.
Commuters spend around 14 minutes a day looking for a parking spot, while those running errands spend 12 minutes on average while seeking an available spot.
The FordPass platform allows users to enter a destination into the app, and then search for all available supported parking areas nearby. Once available options are found, users will see how much parking costs at the available spots, and then arrange a payment in advance, which also brings a booked place.
Since the cost of parking will vary depending on the venue, Ford has not announced the usage fee of its FordPass platform. However, if you knew there was a seamless way that would find you a parking spot, which can also reserve it and allow payment, how much will you be willing to pay to save up to 56 hours a year, on average?
Ford says that FordPass is a free digital platform, so it appears that there will be no subscription or usage fees outside of the effective cost of parking. Availability in other countries and cities will be extended in the future, as Ford focuses on developing a mobility-enabling company, not just an automaker.
For the moment, it is unclear how the system operates in the said cities on the "reserved" parking spot part, but we assume it to be an "Internet of Things" integration.
Sebastian's love for cars began at a young age. Little did he know that a career would emerge from this passion (and that it would not, sadly, involve being a professional racecar driver). In over fourteen years, he got behind the wheel of several hundred vehicles and in the offices of the most important car publications in his homeland. Full profile
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