In the bustling streets of Los Angeles, securing a parking spot can be as challenging as the city’s infamous traffic. With rising complexities in payment methods, many drivers are finding themselves frustrated with the evolving payment landscape.
Matt Glaeser experienced this firsthand when he attempted to pay for parking at a meter near Sam’s Bagels on Larchmont Boulevard. After dropping his kids off at their grandparents, Glaeser found himself forced to navigate a maze of payment options. Although he first reached for quarters, the meter’s coin slot was jammed.
He then turned to his credit card but was met with a message advocating payment through an app, accompanied by a QR code. Unfortunately, the screen was scratched and difficult to scan. After sending a text to the number displayed on the parking sticker, Glaeser received a link to a website where he could enter his credit card information. However, he hesitated as a processing fee for a mere 15 minutes of parking stood in his way. The small fee of 35 cents was enough for him to decide against it, opting instead to forgo his coffee stop in favor of a stale bagel at work.
Glaeser’s experience highlights a larger issue that many Angelenos and visitors face: the complexities of parking payment systems across the city and its surrounding areas. Each locality, whether it’s L.A., Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, or Pasadena, features differing payment requirements for parking meters. Drivers may find themselves needing to use coins, credit cards, or even specialized apps, often dependant on the zone or space number.
Emma Parsons, a 25-year-old comedy writer residing in Palms, echoes the sentiments of many frustrated drivers: “Parking is already one of the things I hate the most. I don’t want to spend more time on it.”
This sentiment is backed by researchers who argue that while parking apps have been available for over a decade, Southern California is still grappling with standardization. The integration of various parking apps, such as Park Smarter and ParkMobile, has introduced useful features like expiration alerts and remote payments. However, with each municipality utilizing a different app, the process often becomes tedious and confusing for users.
Parking solutions have been evolving globally, with many advocating for a single app that can facilitate payments across multiple localities. Similar to the universal adaption of the USB-C cable, experts propose that a uniform parking application for the Southern California region would simplify and enhance the user experience. Mike Manville, a professor of urban planning at UCLA, highlighted that while apps have been introduced, achieving a standardized payment method remains a goal yet to be realized.
Jordan of the Parking Reform Network expressed optimism about future developments, suggesting that as technology improves, the complexities surrounding parking will diminish. “I think we’re getting close. The technology is getting there both on enforcement and payment,” he remarked.
Historically, Los Angeles has held a complicated relationship with paid parking. Having first introduced parking meters in North Hollywood back in 1949, the city has been resistant to change. The initial introduction saw fierce opposition, with local editorials comparing parking meters to imposing sidewalks. Fast forward to 2008, and prices were raised significantly, driven by congestion in crowded areas.
Meters that accept credit card payments weren’t introduced until 2010, in a city where contours of payment methods have remained stagnant for decades. Today, the Los Angeles Department of Transportation operates over 35,000 metered spaces — a significant portion of which are on-street. These spaces generated approximately $40 million in revenue in the last fiscal year.
With the advent of parking apps in 2014 and the rise of contactless payments during the pandemic, L.A. is moving towards a more tech-savvy parking environment. By the end of 2025, all L.A. meters will offer text-to-pay options, followed by the implementation of app payments and contactless tap-to-pay methods by 2026. Despite this advancement, traditional forms of payment will still be preserved for the foreseeable future, as long as the devices are functioning.
The LADOT has plans to further enhance the parking experience, including the installation of improved parking equipment and wayfinding signage for parking facilities, although there are currently no plans to introduce Apple Pay.
The hope is that over time, parking payment apps will become more intuitive, allowing Angelenos to navigate these systems with greater ease. But for now, many, including Parsons, have resorted to keeping quarters handy, favoring physical coins for their simplicity. “I never carried cash around with me in my life, but I don’t want to download an app every time I go somewhere new,” she explained.
Leah Ferrazzani, another Angeleno, reported having multiple parking apps on her phone — a mixture for different county areas. While she finds the Pasadena app the most user-friendly, the overall experience with parking technology can still leave much to be desired.
For even the most tech-savvy individuals, the frustration persists. Jonathan Badeen, co-founder of Tinder, shared a recent experience when he struggled to pay a meter in Sherman Oaks. After ten minutes of attempting to decipher the QR code and ultimately giving up, he lamented that the time spent trying to pay for parking overshadowed the simple errand he had intended to run.
Reflecting on the evolution of payment methods, Badeen noted that while parking meters have come a long way, current apps often fail to simplify the process. “Unless the country or city or the whole metro area wants to standardize on something or they slap an Apple Pay on there, I think it’s a bad idea,” he remarked.
As the city works toward improved efficiency in parking technologies, Angelenos must continue adapting to a landscape riddled with complexities. While parking apps may hold the promise of a brighter, more streamlined future, the reality today remains tangled in the multifaceted web of options, leaving many drivers longing for a simpler solution.
image source from：latimes
