Who Saw I, Robot?

Valets aren't unionized, are they?

The image at right is a parking garage at a technology theme park in Wolfsburg, Germany called Autostadt. The robotic valet is simple: Assign a slot to an incoming car and have the 20-story lift put it in position, retrieving it when called. According to the literature, compared to the traditional parking garage design this layout takes up 20% less space, is cheaper to construct and more safe for users, since there is less chance of accident. Could this be the future of parking?

To be fair, this building is as much attraction as functional garage. A working garage in a real city would need more lifts, driving up the cost. I’m sure there are other issues as well. But apparently there are working (but less sexy) models planned or already in operation in Boston, Philadelphia and a few places in Asia, so the problems do not appear unsolvable.

I have to admit it’s pretty cool.

Tags: technology urbanism