The city of Detroit has begun installing the first of about 500 state-of-the-art parking meter kiosks, and should complete the project by month's end, The Detroit News reports.
The first "pay-by-plate" kiosks have been installed on Livernois, the "Avenue Fashion," between 7 and 8 Mile roads, writes Christine Ferretti.
Meters offer so many options that "people should not be getting tickets," says Gary Brown, Detroit’s chief operating officer.
The News reports:
The technology allows drivers to access a meter kiosk, enter in their license plate number and park in any space within a specific zone, rather than a single spot.
Customers can feed coins or credit or debit cards into the kiosks; or buy parking time via a mobile app, or by calling a toll-free number 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
For quite a while now, the parking kiosks around the city have been broken and people have been parking for free. Some have been ticketed when they've parked in those spots beyond two hours.
A City Council subcommittee is studying a plan for new meter rates, The News reports. Rates would remain $1 an hour in neighborhoods, but rise up to $1.50 an hour in the Midtown and Eastern Market areas and $2 in the city’s central business district.
