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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- Forget the old turnstile parking meters. Salt Lake City is looking to upgrade to electronic meters, which can take credit and debit cards and alert parking enforcers to deadbeats who occupy a space but don't pay.
Mayor Ralph Becker said replacing the city's mechanical meters has been a priority of his since shortly after he took office more than two years ago.
"It looks like we're close to making that a reality," he said.
Our responsibilities go beyond the metered areas. We'll save time with the new meters, and be able to provide more service elsewhere.
–Capt. Carroll Mays
The City Council is learning about options and costs for street meters like the ones Park City has used for a decade and recently upgraded to run off solar power.
The switch won't be cheap, but Council Chairman J.T. Martin said new technology can pay dividends.
A $7 million changeover, he said, could increase annual parking revenue $2 million to $3 million because of better enforcement and efficiencies -- and that's without an increase in parking rates.
The smart machines can alert parking enforcers to deadbeats but also help forgetful motorists by sending text messages warning that their time is almost up and allowing them to make additional payments by cell phone, according to a report filed by Kalamazoo, Mich.-based Walker Parking Consultants/Engineers Inc.
The same message function can log parking citations automatically in court.
"These will change the entire framework, from easing the act of parking, to enforcement, to the courts and even how you pay your ticket," said Capt. Carroll Mays, the city's parking enforcement chief.
European cities have used electronic parking meters for decades, Mays said.
Park City can vouch for them. "It seems to work quite well and we've had few complaints," Councilwoman Liza Simpson said. "The system we chose is used widely by municipalities."
Some systems allow for payment by cell phone, in addition to credit and debit cards or plain old coins or tokens. They also can allow for variable rates depending on the time or day of a week.
A more efficient system would allow Salt Lake's 14 parking enforcers to make better use of their time, Mays said.
"Our responsibilities go beyond the metered areas," Mays said. "We'll save time with the new meters, and be able to provide more service elsewhere."
On a recent day, Sean Stoddard was downtown digging in his pockets for change for his truck when he was told about the possibility of new meters.
"Good," Stoddard said. "Who carries cash around anymore?"
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Information from: Deseret News
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
