BARNET: More motorists are switching to cashless parking (From This Is Local London)

BARNET: More motorists are switching to cashless parking

2:13pm Tuesday 16th December 2008 in

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The trial of a cashless parking system is proving popular with motorists, claim council chiefs.

For the first time in the UK, two providers of the pay-by-phone method are being tested simultaneously by Barnet Council across the borough.

The technology, which requires drivers to call a telephone number, enter their vehicle registration, length of stay and their debit card number to pay for their stay, has been rolled out in 15 off-street car parks since September.

So far, the total revenue collected from the cashless scheme is almost £8,500, which is about six per cent of the £148,197 received from pay-and-display in the car parks during the nine-week period.

A council spokesman said latest figures showed user numbers were up to almost eight per cent and analysis of the six-month trial using the RinGo and Verrus systems would continue into next year.

He added: “It is predicted that take-up will steadily increase to 15 per cent by the end of the trial period as more and more users of Barnet’s car parks switch to the system.”

Pay-and-display machines will remain in car parks to give residents and shoppers the choice of paying by cash or using the cashless option.

A decision will be made in March as to whether there is sufficient demand for the new system and if so, which provider should be used.

The spokesman added: “The-pay-by-phone system provides car park users with a safer, easier and more flexible method of payment for their parking.”

Councillor Andrew Harper, cabinet member for environment and transport said: “The take-up of pay-by- phone parking has been encouraging and what these figures demonstrate is that there is clearly a demand for alternatives to paying with coins at pay-and-display machines in our car parks.”