BOSTON — If you’ve ever driven into Boston and tried to find a parking spot, you know it can be stressful and time-consuming. A group of local high school students recognized that problem and are creating a parking app that’s already earned them a top prize from a Boston-based company.
It was born from frustration.
“We made our team based on a parking problem that we saw our parents were struggling with constantly,” Sarada Koppana, a junior at Chelmsford High School
And even though a group of local high school students aren’t old enough to drive yet---
“We’re like, okay, like, we can make this work even if we’re not the target audience,” said Koppana.
These juniors helped create Telepark--an all-in-one parking app.
“I wouldn’t have to worry about like seeing whether spaces vacant or not. I can just get navigated there,” said Deepika Bhardwhaj, a junior at Acton-Boxborough Regional High School.
Here’s how it works: You put in your destination into the app and it will start directing you to the closest parking meter in the area.
“So as soon as you see that there’s a parking meter available at this location, you’ll most likely be able to arrive there and it will be free,” said Bhardwhaj. “And even if it is taken, our algorithm will reroute you to different spots. That’s how we can ensure guaranteed parking.”
The students have already tested it out and made improvements based on the feedback they received.
“And if you leave early, you get points from our app which are called Telepark points, and you can use these points for free parking in future, future journeys and wherever you’re going next,” said Vani Mittal, a junior at Acton-Boxborough Regional High School.
The students have been working on the app for nearly a year---gathering traffic data from the city of Boston, creating algorithms, and finding ways to finance the project.
A big boost came from a competition they recently won hosted by Boston-based Fetch—a mobile app where you can earn points for gift cards by shopping, eating at restaurants and playing games.
“Given the fact that the business started from us competing in business plan competitions, we thought it would be really fun to run one of our own,” said Wes Schroll, CEO of Fetch.
This team beat out several others from Boston-area high schools to win $10,0000 and one-on-one mentoring with Schroll.
“So I can help hopefully steer them in the direction towards not making the same mistakes I made,” said Schroll.
“Networking is so essential and so important because you can create connections and it can lead you to parts you didn’t even know existed,” said Mittal.
A graduate of Acton-Boxborough Regional High School himself—Schroll says he’s embracing this full-circle moment.
“I had a lot of people along the way who are helping me, giving me time and energy, and for me to be able to do the same for the next generation is just feels like a part of what’s next,” said Schroll.
The group of students plans to enter more competitions to earn money and potentially find other investors to help fund Telepark. They hope to have the app go live in the fall of 2025.
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