CreditCall Client, the City of Seattle, wins US parking award

Customers of Parking Meter manufacturer Parkeon have won 1st and 2nd places in the “Innovation in a parking operation or program” category in the 22nd “Awards for Excellence” competition held by the International Parking Institute (IPI). During a ceremony following the organization’s 2005 Conference & Exposition in Fort Lauderdale, the City of Portland, Oregon received the “Award for Excellence”, while Seattle - as runner-up - took the “Award of Merit” in the third of the Awards’ five categories.

Both cities have replaced single or double space parking meters with solar-powered Parkeon Stelio® multi-space, pay-and-display parking meters that accept coins and credit card payments.

The City of Seattle started commissioning its initial 1,300 machines in April 2004 and uses CreditCall Communications’ CardEase™ secure card payment service to authorize and process credit card payments in real-time.

Click here to see the new machines on the City of Seattle Website.

About CreditCall

In 2000, CreditCall Communications was the first company in Europe to provide secure credit card payment on a pay-and-display (P&D) parking terminal.

CreditCall’s Payment Service for parking was developed to meet a need of UK operator APCOA so motorists could pay for full-day parking without cash. In order to assure security, the card transactions have to be authorised in real time and this is achieved using wireless data (GSM or other mobile data services) as a means of communication.
The CreditCall service was first used in railway station car parks where high ticket values made an easy alternative to cash, essential. Since then more and more operators and local authorities in the UK and mainland Europe have installed the simple and popular service. Parking is always high on City Councils’ agenda, and the facility of card payment allows them to demonstrate their commitment to customer convenience as well as Council revenues.

The CreditCall payment service for parking has been adopted as the standard by all the major P&D machine manufacturers including Parkeon (formerly Schlumberger), Metric Parking, Blick Alfia, Zeag UK and Cale Briparc. The service is available as an option on all new machines and some manufacturers are able to offer an upgrade kit to add the card service to existing coin-only machines

Click here to see the Parkeon Website.