CT
Park News: Parking Solutions - August 2010
CT Park Libya Ltd
“CT
Park began operating in 2002 “Mr De Martino begins “We had been looking
at the business potential of managed parking which was a natural
progression from the warden services that we were already offering.”
Undeterred by the fact that many said that this was a concept that would never take off in Malta, Mr De Martino set about working on changing the public attitudes to paid parking solutions.
“Our initial stumbling block was convincing people that free parking could no longer be taken for granted. There was initial resistance from those who did not believe that parking could be a profitable business but we were able to show that a clean safe and secure parking space was something that the public was willing to pay for” he explains.
While this was a new business model for Malta it was a tried and tested concept in the rest of Europe here paid parking is the norm rather than the exception.
“We began forming partnerships with European suppliers of parking equipment who provided us with the technical equipment and expertise and soon saw our efforts rewarded when the concept began to take off. We now managed car parks of a variety of sizes ranging from small corporate parking areas, to much larger areas such as Park and Ride and Mater Dei s car park.”
The company has also supplied high-tech parking equipment to companies who are looking to upgrade their parking facilities.
“Technology is essential in this industry and can enable you to manage large open spaces very cost effectively. It can also provide you with excellent security measures which is something customers expect from a managed car park."
After providing the critics wrong and being a local pioneer in this field CT Parking has since expanded its operations into the heart of Tripoli in Libya.
“With the success we had seen in the local market we felt that this was a concept that was ripe for exportation into the large North African market” Mr De Martino says. “We therefore teamed up with local partners who had a wealth of business experience within Libya and opened the countrys first ever managed public car park on June 1st of this year."
The experience within Libya has been remarkably similar to the one they had when starting up in Malta.
The period we went through to convince people of the validity of the business model and to change the attitudes was the same and our local experience set us in good stead. However, the area of 1800 spaces we manage in the centre of Tripoli also has exquisitely landscaped gardens situated above it and these also fall under our responsibility. This is something new for us and we are also looking to start leasing our concessions within this area such as coffee shops ice cream parlours and florists. There is also potential for this space to be used for corporate functions and product launches.”
Currently the car park has around 60 per cent of its area utilised and CT Park Libya expect to see their full utilisation before the end of the year.
“We have employed Libyan staff in our operation there” Mr De Martino says “We feel that we have a responsibility to transfer knowledge and expertise in this field and are passing along our experience within this industry.
“This represents a long term opportunity for us and provides us with potential to move into similar projects in the future by showcasing what we can achieve with this particular project. And we look forward to having a very bright future within the managed parking and traffic management sectors in Libya” he concludes.
Published
in The Economic Update - August 2010
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