The city of Ferndale recently installed 12 new pay stations in the most active downtown parking lots as part of an effort to improve the new parking system before it re-launches on March 25.
The additional machines aim to reduce long lines at the pay stations.
"Additional pay station locations were selected by observed pedestrian traffic patterns, the number of transactions per machine at their original locations, the location of existing pay stations, ADA accessibility, available lighting and user comments," Loyd Cureton, director of the Ferndale Department of Public Works, said in a press release.
Two extra units are being kept in reserve to allow city staff a small inventory to replace faulty machines or add a machine if needed, according to the release.
Earlier this year, the city replaced 900 parking lot quarter meters with 20 new
pay stations that accept coins, cash and credit card payments.
In addition to installing more pay stations, the city is also working to reduce unneeded prompts, minimize credit card processing times and install LED lighting to illuminate the pay station keyboards.
On March 11, Ferndale City Council voted to return parking rates to 50 cents an hour and extend free parking. Parking enforcement will resume on Monday, March 25.
Enforcement hours will be 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. through April 30 to give city staff time to install and test solar-powered lighting prototypes for each pay station.
More information on the new parking system, including a map of downtown pay station locations, can be found here.
