Why ParkPlus?

 

Many Calgarians may wonder why the City of Calgary decided to replace parking meters for on-street parking. Over the last four years, we estimate that ParkPlus pay machines are saving Calgarians $2.7M annually. Rush hour towing has also been reduced by 40 per cent. The CPA believes that the ParkPlus system offers many benefits to its customers and is the preferred solution for on-street parking in Calgary.

What happened to the old parking meters?

Parking meters have been used in Calgary since about 1953 and had served as an acceptable traffic and parking control management tool until about 2005. Although people were used to this system of payment, there were a number of limitations with it:

  • Payment was limited to coins or SmartPay cards.
  • Each parking space was defined by a meter and therefore a limited the number of vehicles could park on any given block face.
  • With approximately 4,400 meters in Calgary’s downtown and surrounding business communities, maintenance costs were high and security was challenging.

For example, by November 2005, the Calgary Parking Authority saw a dramatic rise in meter tampering and vandalism. By the summer of 2007, over 40 per cent of all parking meters were subject to either tampering or vandalism and were out of service.

At the peak of this vandalism, the CPA was paying meter technicians over $5,600 a week in overtime to repair meters and spending thousands of dollars on parts. We were fighting a losing battle and the single space parking meter had reached the end of its useful purpose in Calgary.

Why not use pay and display solutions?

Prior to implementing the ParkPlus System, the CPA conducted on-street trials of pay and display machines like those used in Toronto.

We also commissioned an Ipsos Reid poll of more than 600 people. The feedback that we collected from the on-street trial and the survey convinced us that pay and display systems were unacceptable. Customers did not want to find a pay machine, purchase a coupon and then return to the vehicle to display the coupon on their dashboard, especially during inclement weather.

The system also presented enforcement challenges because coupons on dashboards are difficult and time consuming to verify.

What is ParkPlus?

The ParkPlus system uses solar-powered pay machines and license recognition technology to verify payment for parking. To pay for parking at a pay machine, customers enter their parking zone, their license plate and pay with either coin or credit card. Payment can also be made by cell phone once an account has been created online.

ParkPlus Benefits

By removing parking meters and reassigning parking spaces, as many as 486 spots have been created under the ParkPlus System.

ParkPlus machines offer extended benefits from that of traditional parking meters:

  • ParkPlus pay machines will only accept payment during times when payment is required. For example, it will not accept payment after 6 p.m., on Sundays and on holidays.
  • ParkPlus machines will notify customers if they attempt to pay when parking restriction are in effect, for example if they are parking in a rush hour towing zone.
  • Customers can make payment before 9 a.m. but will only be charged for the period of time after 9 a.m. when fees are applicable. With traditional parking meters, if you parked at 8 a.m. and wanted to stay until 10 a.m. you would have had to pay for the first hour of your stay unless you were prepared to return to your vehicle at 9 a.m.

ParkPlus also offers:

  • Multiple payment methods (coin, credit card, cell phone)
  • The ability to pay at ANY machine on the way to a destination for any zone,
  • The convenience of not having to go back to the vehicle to display a coupon,
  • To optionally print parking receipts if required for tax or business expense purposes,
  • Grace times before and after every paid parking session that allow customers a few minutes leeway to park and pay and to return a little later than anticipated. 

ParkPlus Cellphone account holders also receive:

  • Email or call back notification of pending expiry and tow away zones to avoid parking tickets and/or towing,
  • Fast speed dial activation with no voice prompts required,
  • Fast de-activation resulting in cheaper parking as unused time is credited back to the customer’s account,*
  • Low balance notification to avoid payment denial, and
  • Automated online account monitoring and receipting

* ParkPlus cell phone account users will get a phone call advising of pending expiry AND you get your change back by calling back to deactivate your parking if you return to your vehicle ahead of time.