Pay-as-you-go parking machines will be removed from city streets, leaving motorists grappling with up to 30 smartphone apps to pay charges.
- Pay-as-you-go parking machines to be removed from UK city streets
- The move, due to the end of 3G, leaves motorists at the mercy of various apps
Pay-as-you-go parking machines will disappear from the streets of British cities, leaving motorists to crave up to 30 different smartphone apps to pay charges.
People will have to pay for parking through one of the many apps instead of paying on the spot with cash or card.
The move could make parking payments challenging for elderly or vulnerable motorists who may not have a smartphone or have difficulty using apps if they do, according to The times.
Mobile phone operators are disconnecting the 3G data networks that feed the parking meters, forcing municipalities to scrap the machines.
A common complaint among motorists regarding the switch to parking payment apps is how many there are, which can slow people down and lead to missed appointments as they have to download another app.
Pay-as-you-go parking machines are set to disappear from city streets, leaving motorists to the craving of 30 different smartphone apps (Pictured: A parking meter in Newcastle upon Tyne)
People will have to pay for parking through one of the many apps instead of paying on the spot with cash or card, or they could be fined (Pictured: A parking attendant checking cars by a parking meter in Edinburgh)
Britain’s biggest parking app, RingGo, currently has up to 515,000 users, but there are plenty of other apps including ParkMe, Parkopedia, Just Park and PayByPhone that are needed across the country.
Brighton and Hove council will scrap all its pay and display machines by May 31, citing that switching the machines to 4G would require a huge budget. He admitted that the move could cause “digital exclusion.”
And the London Borough of Bromley will retire all the machines in early April due to a total cost of £1m to reconfigure them all.
Nicholas Bennet, Bromley’s executive transport adviser, told The Times: ‘As a retiree I appreciate that some people have problems with modern technology.
“However, we are talking about people handling a ton and a half of steel, which requires more skill than downloading an app.”
Harrow had removed all the machines in January and Enfield plans to have it all done by early April. Other municipalities that have retired some machines are Richmond, Merton and Barking and Dagenham.
Music journalist Pete Paphides wrote about a harrowing moment for his 84-year-old father regarding parking payment apps on Twitter in May.
He said his father had attended a memorial service for his friend at Birmingham’s Greek Cathedral and the meter had been left alone on the app since he was last there.
Panicking at the prospect of using a credit card or app, Mr. Paphides’ father parked and hoped for the best. He called his son right away to ask if he could go online and order parking for him, but it was all automated and there was no answer.
His father died soon after, but he still received a fine. UK Car Park Management ‘did not believe’ Mr Paphides when he said his father could not pay the fine because he had died and referred the case to debt collectors.
Mr Paphides wrote: “It breaks my heart how difficult we have made it for seniors to go about their daily activities and how we terrify them for the crime of not knowing how to download a damn app.” ‘
Vodafone took its 3G network offline in Plymouth and Basingstoke on February 28 and plans to take the entire network offline by the end of 2023.
And EE’s network will shut down at the end of the year, while Three’s will end in 2024.
Music journalist Pete Paphides wrote about a harrowing moment for his 84-year-old father regarding parking payment apps on Twitter in May.
RingGo managing director Peter O’Driscoll blamed theft, vandalism and maintenance costs for the disposal of the machines, as well as the end of 3G.
He added that a new National Parking Platform from city councils and the Transport department could streamline the apps, meaning motorists can use the same wherever they go.
Carolin Abrahams of Age UK claims the move is “disastrous for anyone without a smartphone” and may make older people feel there’s no point going out if they don’t have a means of parking their car legally.
The British Parking Association said the change could “alienate some people, including the elderly” and there should also be a cash or card alternative.
