New Program Gives NYC Motorists Option to Pay for Parking Over Smartphone

Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Department of Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan on Tuesday announced the launch of Park Smart, a mobile app pilot program intended to make the hassle of parking in New York City a whole lot easier.

The two programs within Park Smart give motorists the option to pay for a parking meter remotely and also view real-time curbside parking availability via a smartphone app, the Internet or by telephone.

Initially, both programs will launch for 264 spaces along 18 blocks within the Belmont Business Improvement District in the Bronx and for no additional fee. 

The technology allows motorists to forego credit card or coin payments at meters as well as the use of paper receipts. It also will warn motorists when their time is about to expire via e-mail or text messages and allows them to pay for additional time up to the posted time limit.

“These new initiatives are just the latest examples of our work to bring parking and driving in New York City into the 21st century," said Bloomberg.

The technology uses sensors embedded in the roadway to produce a real-time parking availability map viewable on the internet, smartphones and tablet devices. The real-time map shows a color-coded display indicating the likelihood of finding parking on each block within the pilot area, which drivers can use to minimize the amount of time spent circling blocks and looking for an open spot.

Interested motorists can sign up for Park Smart for free on the PayByPhone website where they can register their license plate numbers and credit card information on encrypted servers and then download the PayByPhone app.

The Department of Transportation will solicit feedback from users on how and when they use the services and how well the payment process and the parking map have worked for them. Based on that feedback, it hopes to expand the Park Smart program to additional commercial districts.

“Parking is easier and more convenient when you know where to look for a space, and when you can pay with a click instead of fumbling for change,” said  Sadik-Khan. “Innovative technologies like these can help make one of the basic facts of city life a little easier while making our streets and commercial districts even more accessible.”

Now, if only the technology could actually hold the space between the time a motorist locates an open spot and parks....