September 2024 Update

Data Collection in Windsor

The town’s parking consultant Dixon Resources Unlimited (DIXON) collected data as part of the Downtown Parking Management Plan to demonstrate the current parking conditions for 48 on-street block faces, eight (8) public on-street lots, 18 private off-street lots, and two (2) shared public and private use lots in Downtown Windsor.

Study Area Map How Data is CollectedOn-street block-face data was collected by DIXON field staff using mobile License Plate Recognition (LPR) technology, while off-street public and private lot data was collected via drone imagery. LPR technology is anonymized and counted only for the purposes of this study. No vehicle data is retained or distributed beyond the purposes of counting vehicles for DIXON’s data collection purposes.

Key Considerations for Understanding the Data

The parking industry considers the ideal target parking occupancy rate to be 85 percent, meaning that there are approximately one or two parking spaces available per block face, or in a desired parking area. This occupancy target minimizes congestion and maximizes utilization of parking assets. The goal is to seek a balanced parking system that remains at or near 85 percent occupancy during most times on average, knowing that there will realistically be some exceptional or outlier times.

Data Collection Rounds

The first round of data was collected during the “off-peak season” on Saturday, May 4 (weekend) and Wednesday, May 8 (weekday) to demonstrate what parking demand looks like when schools are still in session and before the Town’s busier guest and event season begins. Data was collected every hour from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Off street public and private lot data was collected via drone imagery.

• On a typical, non-event day, parking occupancy in the Study Area is low. While some hotspots around key downtown destinations (e.g., Windsor Mill) were observed, there was parking available within about a block of even the busiest areas.
• In the late afternoon/early evening (around 4:00 p.m.), on-street occupancy was observed to increase on the block-faces near the Windsor Mill as people are leaving work and transitioning into post-work activities.
• There were also event-based peaks in utilization observed during Windsor’s popular downtown events. For example, during the Thursday Summer Concert Series on July 25^th, peak occupancy can be seen between 5:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. in the backlots and in some on-street locations.
• The average length of stay for visitors within the Study Area is between 0-3 hours, meaning that turnover within the downtown is relatively high both on-street and off-street.

Next Steps

The third and final round of data collection occurred over Labor Day weekend, when the Town is celebrating the annual Harvest Festival. Data from that final collection round is currently being processed by DIXON and will be shared with the community a bit later this fall along with high-level project recommendations.