UC Riverside Transportation Services (UCR TS) Earns IPMI Reaccreditation as an Accredited Parking Organization (APO) with Distinction
The international designation recognizes national and international standards for parking management and operations, customer service, professional development, security, sustainability, and more.
UCR TS renewed its status as an Accredited Parking Organization (APO) with Distinction, joining an elite class of the top organizations in the parking, transportation, and mobility industry. APO is a designation for organizations that recognizes best practices in responsible parking management and operations, customer service, professional development, sustainability and access management, safety, data security and risk management, and more. Prior to the renewal in 2025, UCR TS was the first University of California campus to achieve this certification in 2018.
“This achievement is the top benchmark of success in our industry, and it follows a comprehensive documentation and review process,” explained Shawn Conrad, CAE, CEO of the International Parking & Mobility Institute (IPMI), the organization that sets the standards for APO Accreditation and Accreditation with Distinction. The APO program recognizes industry standards that develop, ensure, and support a high level of professionalism and competency in parking, transportation, and mobility management. “Only best-of-class organizations can meet the demanding level of excellence required to gain accreditation,” Conrad continued.
To maintain the APO Accreditation, an organization demonstrates its ongoing commitment to evaluation and improvement by implementing industry best practices. At the time of accreditation, applicant organizations work with third-party reviewers to present evidence of accomplishment of more than 100 criteria in 14 categories, in addition to 25 required criteria. To earn the next level of accreditation, APO with Distinction, these organizations must meet more than 60 additional exceptional and progressive best practices across those same 14 categories. Both levels of accreditation require that at least one facility is evaluated and meets the criteria as established by the APO Board of Directors.
Organizations apply for reaccreditation every three years, demonstrating their commitment to continue to meet the evolving APO standards. “Parking at an accredited facility or operation assures the public that the parking organization adheres to a strict code of ethics and meets national and internationally endorsed standards for professionalism, accountability, responsibility, and performance,” Conrad said. “These organizations represent the top tier of service and performance in the parking and mobility sector and set the bar for all others to follow.”