The new Interparking 'Centrum Ezelstraat' opened its doors on Friday 21 May, after 18 months of construction. 

"This new car park is very well located in the northern part of the city where, until now, there was no underground parking available", said Mayor Dirk De fauw. As the name suggests, the new car park is located along one of the best-known access routes to the center of Bruges, just a few steps from Achiel Van Ackerplein, the market square and the municipal theater. "This car park is a great advantage for all the shop keepers and restaurants on the Ezelstraat and Vlamingstraat", says alderman Mercedes Van Volcem.

The car park itself consists of two underground levels and offers 139 parking spaces, including seven spaces for people with reduced mobility. Just like the ten other car parks of the Interparking group in Bruges, the 'Centrum Ezelstraat' car park is equipped with the latest technology, such as contactless access via license plate recognition, the possibility of reserving a parking space online and, of course, compatibility with the Pcard+. 

The Bruges Pcard+ offers many advantages, such as a 20% discount on parking fees. 

Mayor Dirk De fauw: "The extension of the Zand car park and this new 139-space car park in the Ezelstraat are part of the city's vision for mobility. We want to free up as much as possible of the less easily accessible central car parks, such as Zilverpand and Biekorf, for residents and shop keepers. Visitors will be accommodated as much as possible in more accessible locations, such as this new car park in the Ezelstraat, the extended Zand car park and the peripheral car parks." 

According to alderman for public domain Mercedes Van Volcem: "One of the points of our political program is the increase in the number of underground parking spaces. In addition to the extension of the underground car park in Zand, this car park in the Ezelstraat is a great achievement."

Bruges Pcard+: Contactless access and payment

The Bruges Pcard+ (www.pcard.be/brugge), proposed free of charge by Interparking, is read at the entrance and exit of the car parks thanks to the integrated RFID technology. 

Thanks to this card, the user automatically benefits from the best rates in the Bruges car parks and no longer has to queue at the cash desk.  

In most of our car parks in Belgium, you don't even have to show your card or take a ticket at the entrance. Thanks to license plate recognition, you can enter and exit without any contact. The duration of the parking session is immediately registered via the Pcard+ which is linked to the license plate. This technology is already available in all car parks in Bruges.

Upon receipt of the card, it is sufficient to badge it at the entrance and exit of the car park or to link it to the license plate via the following link: www.parkingmadeeasy.be. 

In the t' Zand car park, a contactless experience is also possible via credit and debit cards: by holding out your bank card at the entry and exit terminals, you can easily park without having to go to the cashier.

About Interparking
For 60 years, Interparking has been one of Europe's leading parking operators. Today, the operator manages approximately 950 sites in 9 European countries: Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Poland, Austria, Italy and Romania. Interparking offers 415,000 parking spaces and 704 charging points for electric and hybrid vehicles. The group has more than 2,500 employees.

"In Bruges, Interparking offers 4,652 parking spaces in ten car parks. The expansion of the Zand car park, which is scheduled to open in 2022, will increase the number of parking spaces by an additional 625," says Alderman Mercedes Van Volcem. There will also be new car parks under the Beurs & Congres building. 

A CO2-Neutral company, Interparking's strategy - applicable to urban development as well as to the management of the parking network - is based on three pillars: continuous improvement of the quality of services, innovative mobility solutions to meet the challenges of cities and a responsible policy that contributes to environmental protection.