Solar Powered Parking Meters in Los Angeles

Solar Powered Parking Meters

Solar powered parking meters, like the ones shown to the left, make perfect sense in sunny, Southern California.  Perhaps that’s why Los Angeles recently installed 10,000 new solar powered parking meters throughout the city.

Manufactured by IPS Group, the electronic system inside the parking meters are powered by a solar panel on the rear of the device.  Wireless networking capabilities of the meters allow them to process credit and debit cards with a centralized meter management system that can approve transactions in real time. No more scrounging around for a few quarters to park (but if you prefer coins, the meters take those too!)

The battery pack inside the solar powered parking meters are guaranteed to last 3 years before replacement.  According to the official website:

The IPS Single Space Parking Meter is designed specifically to address the growing demand for multi-payment options on Single Space Parking Meters, including credit card, while offering all the ease and benefits of a traditional single-space meter.

Installing the new solar powered parking meters is relatively easy, too.  Existing poles from traditional parking meters can be used to mount the new meters that run on solar energy.

In Los Angeles, the City is already realizing income from the solar powered parking meters.  According to Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa the newly installed meters generated $230,000 in additional net revenue in September alone.  At that rate, the parking meters could help bring in up to $2.5 million annually, nearly double the original projections of the Los Angeles Department of Transportation.

Because cities don’t have to pay up-front for the solar powered parking meters, the lower cost of a lease allows them to start bringing in increased revenue from the easy-to-use parking meters right away.

You can find the solar powered parking meters in L.A., Denver, Washington, DC, and Eugene, Oregon.  IPS Group notes that its meters are in 45 cities across the U.S. and Canada.

Tags: municipal solar, solar energy, solar power, solar power parking, solar powered parking, solar powered parking meters