Parking app, AppyParking raised a further £2.25 million in funding from major investor Aviva Ventures and from new shareholder, Breed Reply. The new funding will go into AppyParking’s plans for expansion as it eyes more UK cities.

Founded in 2013 by CEO Dan Hubert, AppyParking was initially a London-focused app that helped drivers find the cheapest on and off–street parking, and display what restrictions and tariffs apply. Now the app can be used in 20 UK cities, including Birmingham, Edinburgh and Manchester. With its sights set on making Britain’s vision for autonomous vehicles a reality, AppyParking is now taking the lead to address the fundamental gap between the public and private sector that is standing in the way. AppyParking’s Smart City dashboard was launched to this end.

Last month, AppyParking launched One Click Parking, the world’s first pay-as-you-park connected car solution that aims to reduce average time to park from 20 minutes to 30 seconds, taking out parking fines and supporting cleaner air initiatives. The feature will roll-out nationwide in 2018.

“To receive this funding from Aviva, the UK’s largest car insurer and Breed Reply is a great endorsement of all the work my team have done so far,” says Hubert.

People are already using a variety of technologies in their car to make driving simpler and safer, says Ben Luckett, managing director at major investor, Aviva Investors. “AppyParking has a great solution that uses data in an innovative way to take away the pain of parking in cities around the world. We see data-driven solutions like theirs will play an increasingly important role as we move to a world of autonomous and connected vehicles. We look forward to working with the team at AppyParking as they grow the business further across the UK.”

New investor, Breed Reply is an operational investor in early stage IoT businesses. “AppyParking has quickly established itself as a must have app for drivers but also has exciting applications in terms of fleet management and helping the creation of smart cities,” says Breed Reply CEO Emanuele Angelidis. “Dan and the team have done a brilliant job so far and we are excited about helping them grow and deliver their ambitious plans for the business.”