PAY BY LICENSE PLATE RECOGNITION REPLACING PAID METERED PARKING ON RAILROAD AVE

The City of Summit announced effective November 21, payment by license plate recognition will replace paid metered parking on Railroad Avenue, the street adjacent to the Summit train station.
With the new system, customers will purchase parking time by using the license plate number of their vehicle at a pay station located in the middle of the block. Machines will print a receipt that displays the location, machine number, start and expiration times, amount paid, and license plate.
“This system results in lower set up costs, maintenance, and is more accurate and convenient,” explains Parking Services Manager Rita McNany. “In many cities, pay by plate has replaced parking meters and pay-and-display machines, generating fewer disputed tickets. You print your receipt and take it with you with no need to return to your vehicle to display it on your dashboard. Your license plate is the only identifier you need.”
McNany continues: “Another advantage is that the system also allows the driver to purchase time by phone, making it unnecessary to return to the machine to extend a parking session up to the three hour time limit. The pay by plate machines accepts payment by coins or bills with exact change only, credit and debit cards, and Parkmobile for smart phone payments.”
To assist customers with license plate number recall, the Parking Services Agency will be providing complimentary key fobs with a space for a license plate number to be recorded. Parking Ambassadors will be on hand to assist customers at the Railroad Avenue location during the week of November 21. McNany also suggests using “a mobile phone to take a photograph of the license plate before accessing the pay station.”
Pay by license plate recognition is part of a unified parking management system that was implemented by the Parking Services Agency earlier this year. There are plans to expand use in all city lots and garages by the end of 2017.
For more information about parking in Summit, please visit cityofsummit.org/parking or contact the Parking Services Agency at parking@cityofsummit.org or 908-522-5100.