The City of Brownsville, in partnership with Flowbird Group, has added 65 all-new solar-powered smart paying stations to the downtown area. The city replaced its out-of-date single-space coin parking meters with new environmentally friendly meters that in addition to coins and bills, provide more payment options including contactless payment, mobile app, and Extend-by-Text. This advancement is being implemented as part of the City’s Downtown Revitalization Project.
“We are excited about the installation of these parking stations as the next step towards a more modernized Downtown. We have seen the new addition of restaurants, businesses, and new infrastructure in our Historic Downtown. The revenue generated by the parking stations will be reinvested Downtown to provide for enhanced maintenance, security and events. We love to see this City grow and redevelop in such a positive direction.,” said Helen Ramirez, City Manager, AICP.
The new parking system uses pay-by-parking kiosks, that accept various forms of payment, accepting currency such as coins, bills, debit or credit cards, or contactless/NFC payments such as Apple Pay, Google Pay, or Samsung Pay. To use the machines individuals simply need to enter their license plate number and their anticipated length of stay. Once a form of payment has been used, individuals can choose to receive their text receipt and go along with their stay. Instructions are provided in both English and Spanish.
Other forms of payment option are ‘Extend by Text’. This means users will receive notifications when their parking time is about to expire, giving them the option to add more time remotely without having to visit any pay station. For those who would like to pay the station directly, the user can visit any pay station and add more time, making it more convenient for those visiting the downtown area.
Another form of payment, available through mobile devices, is by using the Flowbird mobile payment app. This app allows users to pay for parking directly without having to visit the pay stations. This app which can be found on the App Store and the Google Play store will allow users to receive text notifications when their time is about to expire, and allow them to extend their time through their devices. The app will also feature a map-based user interface that navigates the user to their preferred parking location.