NYC rolls out new, high-tech parking meters. Here’s how they work

NEW YORK — New York City’s parking meters are getting an upgrade.

The Department of Transportation said the new meters operate by new paperless Pay-By-Plate technology, which allows users to enter their license plate number, instead of having to display a receipt on their vehicle’s dashboard.  

The installation of new meters began Wednesday in Upper Manhattan, at West 166th Street and St. Nicholas Avenue, and will continue through 2024 and into next year, extending into all five boroughs.

“More efficient parking for busy New Yorkers”

The DOT said retrofitted meters will include a large, full-color touchscreen, have multiple language options, and feature a contactless credit card payment system.

“Pay-By-Plate meters will help us say goodbye to paper receipts on dashboards and say hello to simpler, more efficient parking for busy New Yorkers on the go,” DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez said. “It will save time for those who are paying by plates.”

The city has 80,000 metered parking spaces that collectively produce paper receipt rolls 2,500 miles in length per year. Rodriguez said Pay-By-Plate will save the city money and has other benefits.

“This new technology will not only improve the user experience, but each year it will reduce maintenance costs and save enough paper to stretch from New York City to Los Angeles,” Rodriguez said. “This change is good for the environment, good for the business, because there will be more people using the limited parking spots that we have.”

New meters to put an end to common but illegal practice

Officials said the new technology will also help eliminate transferring parking time to a different zone or vehicle.

The DOT said Pay-By-Plate reduces the illegal practice. Traffic agents will check for paid plates with handheld devices — the same enforcement process already used with the ParkNYC app.

“If that’s the case then it will help, but it’s probably another money grab for the city,” said Lambros Barbagiannis, owner of Anthony Flowers.

Barbagiannis said he knows people re-use the same ticket in multiple zones.

“This way, they cut back on that,” he said.

Some applauded the city finally embracing the technology.

“This is a great day. Everything is digital. This was long overdue,” said Luis Mercedes of Yonkers. “It’s perfect.”