Assessing Student Demand for a Community- Driven Real-Time Parking Application at Kean University

Alessia Paredes

Co-Presenters: Angel Bermudez, Yadira Bravo, Edith Gudiel, Joseph Velazquez

College: College of Business and Public Management

Major: BS.MARKETING

Faculty Research Mentor: Kyung Lee  

Abstract:

Parking availability remains a recurring pain point for college students, influencing campussatisfaction, time management, and overall university experience. At Kean University,students frequently report difficulty locating open parking spaces during peak hours,resulting in frustration, lateness, and traffic congestion. Despite widespread smartphoneusage, there is currently no centralized, real-time system that provides students withaccurate parking availability information. This gap presents a potential opportunity for amarket-driven technological solution.The purpose of this marketing research study is to evaluate student demand, perceivedvalue, and adoption likelihood for a proposed community-driven parking application,KeanPark. The app concept relies on user participation, allowing students to check in whenthey park and check out when they leave, thereby generating crowd-sourced, real-timeoccupancy data for campus parking lots. Additional features, such as live confirmationnotifications and a “Find My Car” function, are intended to enhance usability and increaseengagement.A quantitative survey methodology will be employed to collect data from a diverse sampleof Kean University students. The survey will measure parking satisfaction levels, frequencyof parking-related challenges, willingness to use a community-based app, perceivedusefulness of specific features, and likelihood of recommending the app to peers.Descriptive statistics and correlation analysis will be used to identify key drivers ofadoption and assess overall market potential.The findings of this study will provide actionable insights regarding product feasibility,target segmentation, value proposition refinement, and projected user adoption. Thisresearch contributes to marketing strategy development by applying consumer behavioranalysis to a campus-based service innovation.KeywordsCampus Parking, Marketing Research, Consumer Behavior, Mobile Application Adoption,Crowd-Sourced Data