Downtown Parking Meters Go Wireless

We’ve all been there - you score the perfect parking spot, but then don’t have enough coins to feed the meter. Happily, that problem is now in the past thanks to the new wireless meters being installed in the downtown area.

These new and improved meters are the wave of the future and we’re delighted to add them in Royal Oak. No coin? No problem! You can now use your credit card to pay the $1 per hour parking fee -- and in the future, you’ll even be able to use your cell phone.

I'm really impressed with the additional flexibility these new meters offer. And I’m not alone - within minutes of them being installed in the original test area people were already using their credit cards instead of coins.

The new meters are installed at all on-street spots from Lincoln Avenue to 11 Mile Road, Troy Street to Lafayette Avenue. As Public Service Director Greg Rassel said, "Hopefully, the use of multiple payment options will make the parking system more user friendly."

The Downtown Development Authority (DDA) spearheaded this project as part of the ongoing downtown parking project, and the change was approved by the City Commission. Besides making parking payment easier, the wireless meters have many other benefits, including the ability to change parking rates remotely, providing instant notification of damage, and supplying real-time usage counts.

The meters are easy to use – click here for a quick demonstration courtesy of the manufacturer, IPS.

Now, if we could only make more parking spaces magically appear. . .