City Debuts App Letting You Pay Parking Meters From Your Phone
At last: thanks to a new app announced by the de Blasio Administration on Monday, you can now pay the parking meter from your phone in midtown Manhattan — but by the end of next summer the app is expected to reach every borough.
In addition to eliminating that mad dash through the cold when you remember your meter is running out, the app will also eliminate paper receipts.
The app, ParkNYC, is being run through a private-public partnership, having been implemented by the Department of Transportation but operated by private vendor Parkmobile, LLC.
ParkNYC works by linking registered license plate numbers to NYPD traffic enforcement agents’ handheld devices, so traffic cops know when you’ve paid online.
While an app that created parking spaces would be the ideal, we’ll take what we can get. “Parking in New York City can be a challenge, but ParkNYC will make it just a bit easier,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said of the app.
“With no added fees, mobile alerts that let you know when your parking session is ending, and the ability to extend a session without returning to your car, ParkNYC offers a great convenience to New York drivers,” DOT Commissioner Polly Trottenberg said in a press release.
Alas, ParkNYC is currently only available in specific parts of Midtown, but Trottenberg says it “will be available at every metered parking space in every borough by the end of next summer.”
For you luddites out there who’d rather stick to the old ways, fear not: DOT Muni-Meters aren’t going anywhere and will continue to take your plastic and cash.
ParkNYC can be accessed not only through the app, but also online, and over the phone by calling (877) 727-5307.
Here’s how to use the app:
1. Download the ParkNYC app on your phone or go to www.parknyc.org to register an account.
2. Enter personal information including phone number and email; create a password.
3. Provide a license plate number for the account and set alert/notification preferences.
4. Load your wallet. A ParkNYC wallet works like EZPass, and can be reloaded in increments as low as $25. Once registered, drivers may use the mobile app, internet or a toll-free number to pay for parking.
5. Park. After parking, enter the unique zone number for block and length of time. After confirmation, the driver is set!
Extend. If time is running out and maximum time has not already been reached, parking time can be extended without returning to the car.
Here are some other great apps for New York City drivers (and straphangers):