New Parking Meters in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES (Aug 16, 2011) — The Department of Transportation (LADOT) announces 14,000 new “Coin & Card” parking meters have been installed providing more convenient and reliable service, and more revenue for the City.

“With the addition of 14,000 ‘state of the art’ coin/card meters, parking has never been more reliable and consumer-friendly for Angelenos,” Mayor Villaraigosa said. “We’re building a 21st century transportation system in Los Angeles and these new, modern parking meters are a valuable part of our overall plan.”
Approximately 77% of the City’s 39,440 meters have been upgraded to accept credit cards. These modern meters will generate more than 90% of the City’s parking meter revenue.

“I’m all for easy parking in the City and the coin and card meters simply makes parking easier,” Councilmember and Transportation Committee Chair, Bill Rosendahl said. “The easier a meter is to use, the better it is. And additional revenue for the City is always welcome.”

The new meters have been operational approximately 99% of the time, and they call for repair if they are vandalized or malfunction. If a Coin & Card meter needs service, it sends a wireless message to a technician, improving the efficiency of repair to return failed meters to service quickly.

“With these new meters LADOT strives to increase reliability and ease of use of parking in Los Angeles.,” said Jaime de la Vega, LADOT General Manager.

The new meters also are helping to advance the City’s efforts to become more sustainable. The City of Los Angeles now has the most solar-powered parking meters in the country. They are more reliable, in part, because they use the solar battery instead of AA batteries which need frequent replacement. The new Card & Coin Meters will prevent the need to dispose of over 100,000 AA batteries per year through the use of solar power.

The meters are uniquely designed to replace just the top portion of the meter, reusing the existing pole and base. They are stronger and more vandal proof than the old coin meters. “By reusing existing poles and using clean solar power, new Coin and Card meters are a win-win for the city and the environment,” added Mr. de la Vega.

The new meters accept Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover. Drivers are required to pay to park at every meter, and if payment is not accepted at a meter the driver must use another form of payment or find another meter to avoid a citation. A display on each meter provides information about the hours and rates for the meter. Also a sticker outlining the City’s rules has been applied to each new meter. Parking meters in the City cost between $1 -$4 per hour depending on the location and demand in the area.