A parking vehicle detection system, comprising: first and second beacons present at, and configured to broadcast their identities by emitting short-range wireless radio signals from, different locations associated with an access region of a vehicle parking location, the different locations exhibiting location-specific inherent signal-to-noise characteristics, and the first and second beacons being calibrated with respective first and second signal strength connection thresholds matching corresponding ones of the location-specific inherent signal-to-noise characteristics, the first and second beacons being configured to establish on short-range wireless communication links connectivity with multiple smart devices, each of the multiple smart devices associated with a different one of multiple vehicles (570 1, 570 2, 570 3) arranged in a queue along a travel lane and implemented with radio frequency wireless technology to scan for beacon radio signals in a vicinity of the smart device and to provide location-based information content, and the first beacon being configured to form handshake connections with the multiple smart devices; a mobile application configured to operate on the multiple smart devices and enable each of them to initiate and conclude a vehicle parking session; and a backend server in communication with the multiple smart devices through long-range wireless communication links, the backend server configured to store for delivery to the mobile application identities of vehicle parking locations in the vicinity of the multiple smart devices, and on each of the multiple smart devices, the mobile application configured to perform a ranging procedure to determine whether a first distance between the smart device and the first beacon and a second distance between the smart device and the second beacon are within specified amounts corresponding to the respective calibrated first and second signal strength connection thresholds, measure signal strengths of the short-range wireless radio signals emitted by the first and second beacons to determine a ratio value of radio signal strengths that corresponds to a position of the vehicle in the queue, and cause the smart device to transmit the ratio value to the first beacon, the first beacon configured to use the ratio values transmitted to it by the multiple smart devices to identify a first vehicle of the multiple vehicles (570 1, 570 2, 570 3) in the queue occupying a first position that is adjacent to the first beacon, and the mobile application operating on the smart device associated with the first vehicle configured to form a handshake connection with the-first beacon to enable activation of a vehicle parking transaction session first and second beacons present at, and configured to broadcast their identities by emitting short-range wireless radio signals from, different locations associated with an access region of a vehicle parking location, the different locations exhibiting location-specific inherent signal-to-noise characteristics, and the first and second beacons being calibrated with respective first and second signal strength connection thresholds matching corresponding ones of the location-specific inherent signal-to-noise characteristics, the first and second beacons being configured to establish on short-range wireless communication links connectivity with multiple smart devices, each of the multiple smart devices associated with a different one of multiple vehicles (570 1, 570 2, 570 3) arranged in a queue along a travel lane and implemented with radio frequency wireless technology to scan for beacon radio signals in a vicinity of the smart device and to provide location-based information content, and the first beacon being configured to form handshake connections with the multiple smart devices; a mobile application configured to operate on the multiple smart devices and enable each of them to initiate and conclude a vehicle parking session; and a backend server in communication with the multiple smart devices through long-range wireless communication links, the backend server configured to store for delivery to the mobile application identities of vehicle parking locations in the vicinity of the multiple smart devices, and on each of the multiple smart devices, the mobile application configured to perform a ranging procedure to determine whether a first distance between the smart device and the first beacon and a second distance between the smart device and the second beacon are within specified amounts corresponding to the respective calibrated first and second signal strength connection thresholds, measure signal strengths of the short-range wireless radio signals emitted by the first and second beacons to determine a ratio value of radio signal strengths that corresponds to a position of the vehicle in the queue, and cause the smart device to transmit the ratio value to the first beacon, the first beacon configured to use the ratio values transmitted to it by the multiple smart devices to identify a first vehicle of the multiple vehicles (570 1, 570 2, 570 3) in the queue occupying a first position that is adjacent to the first beacon, and the mobile application operating on the smart device associated with the first vehicle configured to form a handshake connection with the-first beacon to enable activation of a vehicle parking transaction session