Cashless parking coming to St. John's in 2020

The City of St. John's says it expects to start installinga newcashless parking payment system in the new year.

The first lot of pay stations, which will include multiple payment options including most credit cards, debit and smartphones, will be in the downtown area of the city. It's expected the stations will be installed by winter 2020.

More pay stations will be installed during the winter and spring, at which time the city will move existing meters to areas that need them until a new pay station is in place.

Meanwhile, the city said it is continuing to install new timed parking area signs in spaces where there are missing or damaged meters.

"Starting in early December certain metered spaces in the downtown and Churchill Square will be replaced with timed parking signs, ranging from 15 minutes to four hours," a news release said Thursday.

"Motorists are encouraged to look for signage when parking."

The PayByPhone option on Harbour Drive will continue as is, the city said.

The new pay stations will allow users to pay by tap and will be equipped with a magnetic strip reader for credit card payment.

Once installed, pay stations will have multiple payment options including most credit cards, debit cards and smartphones, and will be configured with 'tap' card reader. New pay stations and meters will also be equipped with a magnetic strip reader for credit card payment. All meters and stations will be cashless during the first year of operation.

A city spokesperson told CBC in an email that the parking strategy includingmaintaining some cash meters in Churchill Square "to provide a longer transition in that area to accommodate the needs of users in that area."

The spokesperson said the city isn't sure how long this period will be.

As for people with remaining balances left on their existing park card, the spokesperson said the city is encouraging people to try to use it up although staff hope to find a way to transfer remaining amounts.

The pay station contract was awarded to Cale Canada in partnership with EDC Corporation. The contract, worth about $2.4 million, includes pay stations, meters, software and equipment for parking enforcement.

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