THEOREMUS

Sofia, the vibrant capital of Bulgaria with 1.3 million residents, faces pressing environmental challenges driven by harmful emissions and persistent noise pollution. At the heart of the issue is intense vehicle traffic, particularly older, diesel-powered cars, which dominate the roads. The city’s bustling central hub, a magnet for daily activity, bears the brunt of this problem, as high parking demand and congestion further intensify the strain.

To combat this, Sofia is embracing an ambitious vision: by 2035, 80% of all trips within the city should be made by foot, bicycle, or public transport, leaving only 20% to cars. This goal is a key pillar of the city’s Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan and aims to transform Sofia into a cleaner, quieter, and healthier urban environment.

One of the central challenges in achieving this vision lies in optimizing parking management, particularly in Sofia’s busy central “blue zone.” Currently, high parking demand creates a ripple effect of congestion, frustration, and inefficiency. Our innovative solution targets this pain point directly, aiming to improve parking guidance systems while reducing reliance on personal vehicles.

The Theoremus innovative framework reimagines parking management in Sofia’s bustling central blue zone through a unique analytical zoning strategy. By dividing the area into equally-sized hexagons, we harness the power of this six-sided shape, celebrated for its precision and uniformity in spatial analysis. This zoning strategy ensures detailed, local-level parking analysis while allowing for effortless scalability to the entire blue zone.

Data-Driven Insights with Advanced Machine Learning

Using historical inspection data and municipal infrastructure information, Theoremus calculates the maximum car capacity for each hexagon. From there, Theoremus develops sophisticated predictive machine learning models tailored to each zone, incorporating key factors such as:

  • Time-based variables: Peak hours, day of the week (weekday, weekend, holiday).
  • Seasonal trends that influence parking demand.
  • Resident permits and the type of hexagon being analyzed.

This data-driven model doesn’t just forecast parking demand—it integrates empirical findings from an extensive parking behavior study. Using camera data supplied by the municipality, we analyze vehicle movements in and out of parking zones, tracking metrics such as time spent searching for parking and occupancy rates. These insights feed directly into the machine learning model, enhancing its predictive accuracy for both demand forecasting and search time estimation.

Powerful Tools for Real-Time Decision-Making

To bring this methodology to life, we provide the Sofia Urban Mobility Center (SUMC) with cutting-edge technological solutions:

An Advanced Analytics Dashboard

  • Real-time parking availability heatmaps.
  • Short-term parking demand forecasts
  • Historical occupancy analysis for long-term planning
  • Average search times for optimized route planning.

Backend Integration

  • Seamless connectivity with popular apps like the SUMC parking payment app and Spark car-sharing services.
  • User behavior data collection to refine predictions and enhance services.

Engaging Citizens in Sustainable Mobility

Theoremus citizen engagement strategy is a cornerstone of this approach, fostering shared responsibility and collective action. Users participate in pop-up surveys via parking and mobility apps, reporting their parking search durations. In return, they earn redeemable points as rewards, encouraging active involvement and more efficient parking habits. This strategy not only improves parking efficiency but also creates a community-driven movement toward sustainability.

The Impact: Reducing Emissions and Congestion

Our solution directly tackles greenhouse gas emissions, noise pollution, and urban congestion:

  • Empowered decision-making: The dashboard equips the municipality with actionable insights, enabling data-driven strategies to reduce traffic and idling times.
  • Citizen adoption: Engaging users in smarter parking practices reduces emissions as they adopt more efficient habits.

This approach transforms Sofia’s parking challenges into opportunities for smarter, greener urban mobility, advancing the city’s ambitious vision for a cleaner, quieter future.