Sun shines on latest parking machines

David Gould says the machine can be used for theatres and tourist attractions. Picture / Martin Sykes

Business is booming for an Albany company as city councils in New Zealand and Australia switch to meters that accept parking charges by text messaging, credit cards - and cash.

In the past six months, CHS Parking Systems has won contracts in Sydney, Melbourne, Wellington, and now Auckland City for its EziPark Global pay-and-display parking meter.

Rather than scrambling for change, motorists send coded text messages to receive the parking receipts to display on their dashboards.

At the moment, this only works for Vodafone mobile customers and the fee is charged to their monthly phone bill (Telecom's mobile customers will be able to use the service by Christmas).

The telecommunications company then pays the fees to the council in a lump sum.

Motorists can also swipe their credit card for the payment - and the machine will still accept coins.

Aucklanders will soon see 400 of the sleek, silver, solar-powered meters in the central city after CHS won the contract from the city council on Wednesday.

This follows the successful trial of a dozen EziPark meters on Princes St near the University of Auckland.

General manager David Gould said that in a cashless society councils were looking to provide other means of paying for street parking, a revenue source that earns Auckland City $25 million a year.

Increases in charges meant fewer people had the right amount of change.

Gould said the new method also made it easier for sales reps to keep track of work expenses as the tariff was charged direct to the company credit card or mobile phone account.

EziPark meters - priced at $8000 each - offer "walk-up-start" which means cellphones do not need to be pre-registered for the service.

Gould said the meters did not yet allow motorists to top up the machine by cellphone, but could be programmed to send a text message reminder.

Credit card payments are pre-authorised for transaction security, which means the city councils will not get ripped off.

Although designing and making high-tech parking meters is its speciality, the company also imports a range of coin-counting machines, which it sells to banks.

It also provides coin-sorting and note-exchange machines that are used in banks and casinos.

Joint shareholders and directors Russell Waite and Mark Oliver established the company 12 years ago when they got the New Zealand agency for the UK-made Mars coin mechanism used in vending machines.

A quest to find new uses for the device has driven the innovation which is seen in its latest parking meters.

The 100kg aluminium bodies arrive pre-assembled from Christchurch and staff insert the "brains" or electronic systems as well as work on design and repairs.

EziPark meters alert the office if the print rolls or batteries need to be replaced, or the meters are jammed.

The meters also keep a running total of the cash they are holding.

Wellington was the first city to adopt the meters, which have been street furniture in its busiest retail areas for a year.

Gould expects the number of meters to grow in both cities as they phase out the green coin-operated pay-and-display meters.

It is expected more machines will be ordered when councils will need to modify their parking meters after the coin upgrade in July.

That will see 5c coins taken out of circulation and 50c, 20c and 10c coins resized.

The company has more tenders in the pipeline for Australia, where there are about 2000 meters on the street.

Next year, it will venture into the US where the market is still dominated by the single head or "lollipop" parking meters.

Gould is optimistic about the new barcoded ticket machine the company developed for the student carpark at Massey University in Palmerston North and Hanging Rock National Park in Australia.

Essentially, it replaces "a man in a booth" and allows payments and access to be customised in several ways, such as for residents only or multiple exits.

"Let's not get hung up on parking," said Gould, who sees this machine becoming widespread in movie theatres, skifields and tourist attractions - "anywhere you have to go through a turnstyle, we can drive that".

* CHS won the innovation and export award at the North Shore Business Excellence Awards last month.

How it works

* Motorists pay for parking via text messaging with the EziPark parking meter.

* The fee is charged to their mobile phone account.

* North Shore company CHS Parking Systems provide the high-tech meters.

* Auckland City has bought 300, joining Wellington, Sydney, Melbourne and the Gold Coast in adopting the technology.