Parking in Beirut is an absolute nightmare. Anyone who lives, works or studies in the capital knows the horror of parking in the city. Whether it’s trying to park in gridlocked traffic, the park meters that are far and rarely ever work, the valet mafias that violently occupy any free parking spot, the empty towers that replace most parking lots, the violation of parking lots of the 3000LBP price and charging as much as 5000, 7000 and even 10000LBP… The list goes on and on.

Possible High-Tech Solutions?

There are several folks trying to do something about this. There’s a company called ABSC, that’s importing Korean-made, ferris-wheel like parking structures. I was first made aware of them when I saw one in a parking lot in Zouk Mikael. You park in the empty car compartment, then you select a 4-digit password. To hail your car when you wanna leave, you just punch in the 4-digit password again and your car will be ready to drive away in in 90 seconds.

Another company, SPCL, felt the Korean version of the automated parking structures was too expensive to make economic sense, so they decided to create their own right here in Lebanon.

This is that blue building you might have noticed and wondered what that might be. It’s right next to the Fiat bridge in the Mathaf area, and no, it’s not a training building for security forces, nor a rock-climbing structure. It’s a locally-produced automatic parking structure that the company feels might be the solution for the seemingly impossible parking problem in Beirut.

Here’s a video of how the Lebanese version works

How Much Will This Cost?

It would definitely be a great solution for buildings without enough parking spots, but there are two concerns that came to my mind. The first, how much it’d cost to get and maintain these automated parking structures. Second, how much it’d cost us to park in them. If it’s for a residential building, you won’t have to pay every time you park, obviously. However, if you’re going somewhere public like the bank or a shop, will the price tag be too high? Especially since regular parking lots are charging up to 7000 and 10000 LBP, how much would a high-tech option cost? Or rather, how much will they charge us to park in them with such exorbitant, unchecked current parking rates? And no other option to park in Beirut. And very little viable public transport options…

Not All Gloom and Doom

I think the prices will be an extra burden on our wallets, but, I’m also excited that local companies are taking the initiative and trying to find and create solutions to problems the Lebanese authorities never even bother with (they’re too busy drafting tax hikes to solve issues like urban planning and that boring stuff).

Maybe more entrepreneurs and engineers here should start coming up with solutions the Lebanese government, busy extending for itself and hiking taxes on the lower and dwindling middle class, never even tries to do. Can’t wait to try one of those systems! Will let you know about it when I do.