The Story of Secure Parking's Boss on the Evolution of the Parking Business: From Empty Land to Smart Parking

JAKARTA — The parking business in major cities is undergoing significant changes. A service once synonymous with vacant lots and simple management has evolved into a digital parking system that utilises technology and artificial intelligence to manage vehicle mobility more efficiently.

This transformation did not happen instantly. The journey towards a “smart parking” system actually began with a simple step, even from a vacant piece of land that was once used as a dumping site in Jakarta.

“In 1992 we started with a very simple location. It was vacant land that had previously been used as a dumping ground, behind Hayam Wuruk in Jakarta,” said Rustam Rachmat, President Director of PT Securindo Packatama Indonesia or Secure Parking, in a casual conversation with Kompas.com in Jakarta on Monday, 9 March 2026.

He saw an opportunity when the Hayam Wuruk area was filled with office buildings that struggled to provide parking spaces for employees. Many vehicles were forced to park outside buildings because parking capacity at offices was already full.

The idea to utilise the vacant land emerged spontaneously when Rustam met the land owner, who was located across from a goat satay restaurant in the Hayam Wuruk area, Central Jakarta, which he frequently visited.

“I told the land owner, what if we managed the land as a parking area. So you wouldn’t have to pay people to guard it to prevent it from becoming a dumping site, and people who eat there would have a place to park,” he said.

A simple agreement was reached. The land was then levelled and functioned as a parking area with a capacity of around 30 vehicles.

“Back then parking had one table, someone would sit smoking, there was no system,” Rustam said.

“I saw that parking could be professionalised, served more neatly and more transparently,” he continued.

However, introducing the concept of professional parking management was not easy. For the first three years, Secure Parking faced challenges because the public was not familiar with this business model.

“At that time, hardly anyone knew what a parking manager was. So the first three years were very difficult,” he said.