TMCnet News
AutoReturn Continues Rapid Growth as Its Municipal Towing Management System Increases Towing Efficiency in Las Vegas, Denver and AustinAutoReturn, the nation's leading municipal towing logistics company, continues to expand across the country following a year of explosive growth that saw the rollout of innovative new auto towing, retrieval and impound systems in Las Vegas, Austin, and Denver. The three cities joined a growing number of communities that have taken advantage of AutoReturn's expertise in expediting and simplifying automobile towing following accidents, breakdowns or impounds. To date, over 1.2 million municipal tows have been performed using the AutoReturn digitized platform, representing over 200,000 tows per year. "2016 marked the first time in our company's history that we added on three major metropolitan areas in the same year," said AutoReturn CEO John Wicker. "We're proud of our achievements in making the towing experience simpler and easier for everyone." Las Vegas, Denver and Austin became the latest communities to become part of the "Smart City" movement, which aims to improve quality of life by using technology to make municipal services more efficient. AutoReturn has successfully addressed the common set of problems that have historically plagued municipal towing - long towing wait times, vehicle damage, property loss, accounting issues, lost city revenue, little or no transparency, and poor customer service. "We believe our solution fundamentally transforms the way cities and residents think about municipal services," said Wicker. "AutoReturn brings state-of-the-art logistics capabilities to police departments, making the process a lot easier for everyone." Prior to AutoReturn's partnership, cities like Las Vegas dispatched tow requests to various tow operators using different programs, meaning data collection was difficult. Wih AutoReturn's digitized management of the towing and impound process, police departments now have a transparent way to accurately document tow volume, response times and customer service levels. In Denver, AutoReturn's solution platform is being used to optimize the city's impound operation at the Vehicle Impound Facility (VIF), making the impounding process more efficient and seamless. Using its unique management and logistics program, AutoReturn has also significantly decreased officer and citizen wait times in Austin and Las Vegas by using smartphones and GPS to make intelligent dispatch decisions. In Austin, for instance, the average response time for towing following a crash dropped from 30 minutes to below eight minutes using AutoReturn's digitized platform. Getting disabled cars off the roads more quickly helps decrease traffic congestion and reduces secondary accidents. Streamlining the towing dispatch system also allows police to get back on the streets faster and focus on public safety. In addition, AutoReturn takes the hassle out of towing by making it easier for citizens to find their cars after they've been towed. AutoReturn's system allows car owners to find their vehicles through a user-friendly web search or an automated phone system, backed by a 24-hour service center. Damage complaints are also greatly reduced, because tow drivers are required to document a vehicle before its towed. And the data collected through the AutoReturn dispatch and impound apps can be used by the local police department to improve driver safety -- by determining which intersections are the most vulnerable to an accident, for instance. Municipalities that sign on with AutoReturn see a significant reduction in towing and related management costs, many by as much as 30 percent or more. "Our solution changes the way cities think about municipal services," said Wicker. "AutoReturn brings state-of-the-art logistics capabilities to police and transit departments, making the process a lot easier for everyone." Besides Austin, Denver and Las Vegas, AutoReturn's platform is used in Baltimore County (MD), Concord (CA (News - Alert)), Indianapolis, Kansas City, San Diego, and San Francisco. The company expects to roll out its automated systems in a number of other cities in the weeks and months ahead, and believes 2017 will bring even more rapid growth. "We are proud of the positive impacts that our program has had on towing services across the country and are excited about the opportunities that await in 2017," Wicker said. About AutoReturn AutoReturn is the nation's leading municipal towing logistics company through its world-class technology, 24x365 dispatch command center and system integration capabilities. AutoReturn collaborates with municipalities and existing local tow operators to help achieve efficiency, superior service, and decreased costs. The company was formed to revolutionize the municipal towing industry and is an innovator and investor in technology, repeatable processes, training programs and other infrastructure. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170223006667/en/ |
