Second phase of parking meters pilot project begins on Ninth Street

The City of Columbia has begun testing the second type of parking meter payment systems on Ninth Street. City crews installed 40 single-space meters from IPS Group Inc. this week on Ninth Street from Locust Street to University Avenue. Patrons parking along this two-block span will pay at the meter adjacent to their parking space. These meters are similar to what are on-street currently, with the main difference being the addition of payment by credit cards and cell phone.

During the testing of the IPS single-space meters, patrons will not be able to use bank debit cards or the city's EZ Park cards. Debit cards cannot be used on these meters because there is no key pad to enter a pin number. The EZ Park cards are incompatible with the IPS machines, but can still be used at the multi-space machines. Visa, Mastercard and Discover cards can be used.

The two multi-space systems are still being tested on Ninth Street, between Broadway and Locust Streets, which will run through mid-May. These tests will allow city staff and the Parking Task Force to measure the benefit of paying by credit card and cell phone, as well as the willingness of patrons to go to a multi-space system verses single-space meters.

Parking is enforced in the downtown area Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and is free on Sundays. Results from the pilot project will be studied by the Task Force and City Council this summer. For more information about downtown parking, go online to www.GoColumbiaMo.com (search: GoParking) or call the Public Works Department at (573) 874-7250.