Starting today, University parking moves into the future. Seven “Pay and Display” parking meters — which are solar powered and accept various forms of payment, including credit cards — have been installed at several locations on campus. There are five along East 15th Avenue, one in a portion of the EMU parking lot and one in front of Oregon Hall.
They will cost the same 75 cents per hour as the old meters, and with the exception of the one outside Oregon Hall, there is no limit to the amount of time a student can purchase. There is, however, a minimum purchase of one hour, and if students don’t use all of their time, it won’t carry over.
The machines distribute a slip of paper to be placed on a car’s dashboard. Twenty to thirty spaces are designated to each machine.
At around $10,000 per unit, the new machines cost much more than traditional meters, which run about $350 excluding the post and installation expenses. However, each new meter has the potential to cover 1,000 spaces.
Department of Public Safety Parking and Transportation Manager Rand Stamm said the new meters will require little maintenance, and because parking is
self-supporting, they will eventually pay for themselves.
“Pay and Display” meters at the University will accept cash, any denomination of coins, Visa and Mastercard; if this test period proves successful, they could be programmed to accept tokens and Smartcards as well. Smartcards work similarly to prepaid phone cards, keeping track of the cash value remaining each time the card is used.
DPS has been working on the parking project since last summer. “Pay and Display” meters communicate wirelessly and are secured with bullet-proof steel, drill resistant locks and anti-crowbar door protection.
Stamm, who initially proposed and spearheaded the program after seeing its success in downtown Portland, said the change was made primarily for convenience and easier maintenance, not to make more money.
According the City of Portland’s Office of Transportation Web site, the city switched to the Smartmeter system because each of the city’s 7,000 street meters “must be visited frequently for cash collections, repairs, battery replacements, etc.” It also notes that the new meters improve reliability and reduce costs.

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