Parking 101: Parking Meters
When I came to Partek Solutions almost 10 years ago, I had no idea that the 'Parking Industry' was a thing. Looking back now it's obvious that virtually everything is part of some larger industry.
Needless to say, I was pretty overwhelmed with all of the information. Here at Partek we deal primarily with media, and even still the amount of information to be absorbed was really impressive.
In an effort to help anyone else who might be getting started themselves, I thought we would start a series of educational posts about some of the components within a parking operation (we'll even throw in a few shameless product plugs along the way!)
Today, we're looking at Parking Meters.
There are several different prominent manufacturers of parking meters, the most notable among them being: Parkeon, Global Parking Solutions, Ventek, and Cale. Each of these have unique product lines and capabilities but all offer equipment to facilitate On Street Parking (As the name suggests, this means parking on the street.) Below are the different types of On Street Parking Meters
- Pay and Display: Pay and display meters provide the parking customer with a time-stamped receipt which is to be placed in the vehicle (usually on the dash). The parking enforcement officer visually inspects these to ensure the customer has paid.
- Pay by Space: To use this type of system, you enter your parking space number into the meter and select an amount of time. The enforcement officer will have a list of spaces that are paid-for. Any vehicles occupying unpaid spaces receive a citation.
- Pay by Plate: Using this system is very flexible. You simply enter your plate number when paying at the meter and you're generally free to park anywhere in the covered area. This is most useful in shopping and arts districts, allowing patrons to move around within an area and visit more businesses.
- Single Space Meters: These are the meters most people are familiar with, a post with a small coin or credit card operated meter at each parking space.
