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Parking in Carlisle? There's an app for that [The Sentinel, Carlisle, Pa.](Sentinel, The (Carlisle, PA) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Sept. 18--CARLISLE -- Drivers in downtown Carlisle can now turn to their smartphone to pay for parking. The borough officially rolled out the online system for feeding the meter on Wednesday. Drivers can now pay for metered parking using Passport Parking, a third-party system that uses a smartphone app, text messaging, telephone calls and online methods of payment for parking. "One of the first things I started thinking about when I got here was how to modernize the parking," Assistant Borough Manager Debra Figueroa said. Figueroa said the borough considered purchasing smart meters, but the up-front cost would have been in excess of $400,000. That would have bumped parking rates to nearly $2 per hour to compensate. She described the new pay-by-phone system as a middle ground, offering the convenience of paying with a credit card with no up-front costs. "I think it's a good idea considering we get a lot of people that come in just wanting change for the meters," said Samantha Rhody of Courthouse Common Espresso Bar and Bistro. Rates for parking will remain the standard 50 cents per hour, but there will be a 45-cent convenience charge for each transaction to help cover the cost of the service provided by Passport Parking and for merchant processing fees for credit card usage. Meters in downtown Carlisle will be equipped with a sticker, provided by Passport Parking, that indicates which zone and space that meter is connected to. Users plug that information, along with credit card information, into the app to buy time at the meter. The meters are not connected to the app and will not show the time added, but Figueroa said the borough's ticketing system is connected, and parking staff will be able to see if a meter has been paid for online. Customers will receive a text message before their meter expires that will allow them to increase the time on their parking meter without incurring additional convenience fees. "For them to be able to sit down and continue to work and not have to run out and pay the meter, it's a benefit," said Eric Bell, owner of Carlisle Bakery. A "wallet" can also be pre-loaded with money to be used for parking. The initial minimum amount added to the "wallet" will be $5. Customers will only be charged the convenience fee when the wallet is loaded, not with each transaction. Rhody said that the ability to add more time to the meter without having to leave the bistro was a welcome convenience. She joked that she has received multiple tickets for parking around her mother's bistro and had to set a timer to remind her when to go put more change in the meter when she was working. "I see the old ways as an issue," Bell said. "So many times I get people who come in and need quarters for dollars because they have to run out and put it in the meter. I think by adding an app or an ability to pay via the phone or the Internet is a better way." Bell raised concerns about the overall security of an ever-more-connected society, highlighting recent data breaches at Target, Home Depot and other institutions to which customers regularly give credit card information. Passport Parking boasts on its website that its services are Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards, the industry standard for security pertaining to credit and debit card transactions. Silver, short-term meters have a four-hour limit for pay-by-phone, without an option to renew. Following the four-hour block, drivers must then either move their vehicle, insert coins into the meter or risk being ticketed. Long-term, gold meters have a 10-hour limit. Coins will still be accepted at the meters, since the actual meters are not being removed, and the app produces a receipt that Figueroa said can be brought to the borough if a ticket is issued erroneously. All of the on-street parking meters should be equipped with stickers by Friday. Stickers will be added to lot meters in the near future. "I think it's one of those things that might be hard for people to get used to, because every time new technology comes out, people can be shy towards (it)," Rhody said. "Overall, I think it may take sometime, but I think it's a good investment." For more information about the service, visit dowtowneasypark.com or passportparking.com or download the Passport Parking app from the Apple or Android store. ------ Posted earlier on cumberlink.com: The borough officially instituted the use of Passport Parking, a third-party service that allows customers to pay for parking via a mobile app, text message, phone or online from a computer. Rates for parking will remain the standard 50 cents per hour, but a 45-cent convenience charge will be assessed for each transaction to help cover the cost of the service provided by Passport Parking and merchant processing fees for credit card usage. Customers will receive a text message before their meter expires that will allow them to increase the time on their parking meter, without incurring additional convenience fees. A "wallet" can also be pre-loaded with money to be used for parking. The initial minimum amount added to the "wallet" will be $5, and customers will only be charged the convenience fee when the wallet is loaded, not with each transaction. Silver, short-term meters have a four-hour limit for pay-by-phone, without an option to renew. Following the four-hour block, drivers would need to either move their vehicle, insert coins into the meter or risk being ticketed. Long-term, gold meters have a 10-hour limit. For more information about the service, visit dowtowneasypark.com or passportparking.com or download the Passport Parking app from the Apple or Android store. ___ (c)2014 The Sentinel (Carlisle, Pa.) Visit The Sentinel (Carlisle, Pa.) at www.cumberlink.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |