Parking in New York City is about to become a little easier thanks to the city's new pay by phone parking meter program. The program will be launched in the next few months and will feature 300 parking meters programmed to accept payment via text message or from a specially built app.
Similar parking meters are already in use in Atlanta and Washington D.C. The program would allow users to top-up their parking meters from their phone, eliminating the need to rush back to the car to pay for more time. Perhaps the greatest feature of the program are the alerts sent out by the meters when time is nearly expired. Drivers receiving these alerts can fill up their meters simply by texting back how much time they want added. Here's hoping that this program is a hit and that its success inspires other cities to update their parking meters.
Key Themes Behind This Trend
- Pay-by-phone Parking Meters
- Disruption opportunity to create innovative payment options for other public services.
- Mobile Payment Systems
- Disruption opportunity to expand mobile payment options to other potential markets.
- Smart City Technologies
- Disruption opportunity to integrate smart city technologies into other urban services and infrastructure.
Where This Applies
- Transportation
- Disruption opportunity to create smart parking systems that increase efficiency and reduce congestion.
- Tech
- Disruption opportunity to develop innovative mobile payment systems that offer greater convenience and security.
- Retail
- Disruption opportunity to integrate mobile payment options into physical retail stores, reducing checkout time and increasing customer satisfaction.
