Integrating IoT Technologies for Smart Parking Management: A Cost-Effective System with Telegram-Based Real-Time Alerts

As urbanization and vehicle ownership continue to rise, parking challenges significantly contribute to traffic congestion, fuel wastage, and heightened carbon emissions, with drivers spending considerable time searching for available spaces. Traditional parking systems often fail to address these issues efficiently, while current smart parking solutions are hindered by high costs, communication delays, and limited scalability. This study introduces a cost-effective IoT-based Smart Parking System integrating real-time monitoring, automated gate operations, and Telegram-based notifications to enhance parking management. Utilizing ultrasonic and infrared sensors for precise vehicle detection, the system employs MQTT for seamless communication with the Favoriot cloud platform, ensuring robust data management and instant notifications. Automated gate control, executed through servo motors managed by a Raspberry Pi and orchestrated by Node-RED, ensures smooth operation. Results demonstrate that the system achieves 97% accuracy in slot occupancy detection, reduces parking search time by 40%, and ensures real-time notifications with less than a 1 -second delay. This scalable and user-friendly solution not only fills existing research gaps but also optimizes parking space utilization and promotes a sustainable urban environment by minimizing unnecessary vehicle emissions. The findings highlight the potential of IoT technologies to deliver efficient, real-time parking management for modern urban needs.