Board of Trustees

MEETING NOTICE Village of Scarsdale A meeting of the Municipal Services Committee of the Board of Trustees of the Village of Scarsdale has been scheduled for Tuesday, May 22, 2018 at 6:00 PM. The meeting will be held in Third Floor Meeting Room in Village Hall. Agenda 1. Parking Meter Pilot Program Report – Presentation by Village Consultant. CS: 04-26-18 FAX: Scarsdale Inquirer E-MAIL: Journal News (Lohud) Scarsdale 10583 Scarsdale Hamlet Hub The Daily Scarsdale cc: Lobby Bulletin Board  FINAL REPORT May, 2018 PARKING METER PILOT TEST IN SCARSDALE, NY: FINDINGS Finding a balance between community desires and operational needs  Contents Page Introduction 2 How was the Pilot Test conducted? 4 Test Meter Equipment Determining the Pilot Test Meter Locations Determining the Control Meter Locations Data Collection Public Outreach 10 Survey Respondents 13 Pilot Test Results 15 User Preferences of the Test Meters Comparing Revenue from Control and Test Meters Operations Factors that Impact Revenue Operational Issues Encountered 21 Cost Estimates for Equipment Implementation 24 Credit Card Transaction Costs Capital Equipment & Ongoing Costs Parking Payment Apps Other Parking Considerations 33 Conclusion 35 Acknowledgements 37 Appendix 38 Survey Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 1  Introduction The only constant is change. This is as true today as it was when Heraclitus was first recorded saying it – back in 500 BC. Today, parking technologies are evolving alongside the transformative changes that are occurring simultaneously in the automotive industry. These changes are happening at an increasing rate, so that technologies that once seemed futuristic just 5 years ago, are now moving from the laboratory to test operation in city streets. The rise of these new capabilities in data collection and recording are even inspiring technologists and city planners to re-imagine how cities and towns can be designed from the ground up to better incorporate this information capturing ability to better deliver city services and manage resources. This creates a unique challenge for cities, towns and villages to determine how to meet the needs of today while still keeping a watchful eye on the changes that will arrive on their doorstep tomorrow. Like many municipalities, the Village of Scarsdale has aging parking meters. Some municipalities may have meters that can be 20 years old. As these meters approach the end of their “useful life”, municipalities are faced with investigating their suitable replacement. The market abounds with several new “smart” parking technologies to meet this demand. New meter technologies also generate operational data to help improve parking decisions, such as “How full is a parking area before noon?” This information can allow communities to tailor their parking programs to meet specific local needs. However, these new features and functions carry increased costs. Which features are worth the additional cost and ongoing operational expense? How will these technologies be accepted by the community? Will these technologies make it easier for shoppers to access stores and restaurants while maintaining a frequent turn over in premium parking spaces? How can a municipality maintain and manage this new equipment with existing staff and resources? These are all important questions that must be asked. To answer these questions, many forward-thinking communities will conduct an on-street pilot test of new parking technologies. This enables the equipment to be examined in local conditions to test operational and performance issues. It also provides a valuable opportunity for local residents, business owners and visitors to be active participants in the decision-making process by providing feedback on the parking options under consideration. The pilot test also enables Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 2 the municipality to make more accurate projections of the costs that will be encountered with different parking options. Roanoke’s parking meter pilot program offers lessons for Charlottesville Monday, July 24, 2017 at 7:51 p.m. ROANOKE — A 90-day trial of parking meters in downtown Roanoke started Monday, six weeks before a similar but longer test is set to take effect in downtown Charlottesville. “The goal of the pilot is really to provide more access to more people for these high-demand on-street spaces,” said Wyatt Poats, general manager of Park Roanoke, a for-profit organization that manages surface and on-street parking as part of a contract with the city of Roanoke. The same philosophy is driving the city of Charlottesville to begin a six- month pilot of its own beginning Sept. 5. Examples of Recent Parking Meter Pilot Tests in other Communities Pilot tests have been conducted in communities across the country from Boston to Buffalo. This is because a pilot test that examines parking with built in on-street sensors on a sunny Californian street will have very different implications if installed on a salt and snow-covered street in upstate New York, even if the equipment being tested is identical. Some communities may discover during the testing of equipment that they have operational issues that need to be addressed to improve parking management. Some communities may discover that revenue losses from existing equipment has a substantial impact on their bottom line. These are findings that are unique to each community and are not directly transferable from one to the next – even if two communities are next door to each other. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 3  How was the Pilot Test Conducted? During the summer of 2017 the Village of Scarsdale began detailed discussions on the possibility of conducting a parking meter pilot test in the community. Due to the logistical and time- consuming aspects of conducting a pilot test, the assistance of an independent consultant was contracted to design and implement the project. The consultant had prior experience in several areas critical to the project: survey research, community parking and the consultant had conducted a prior meter pilot test for another nearby community. The consultant was not a past or current employee of any parking meter company or the Village of Scarsdale. The staff at the Village of Scarsdale made the test equipment selection decision. The objective was to examine two types of single space meters as well as two pay station technologies for a total of four technologies tested. The equipment selected for testing was: T2 Technologies, the Luke II, a pay station. An older version of this meter is currently in use in Village of Scarsdale parking structures. MacKay Inc., the Tango, a pay station This was a new pay station product developed by an established parking meter company. IPS Inc., the M5, a single space smart meter This is a popular smart meter that can also be fitted with sensors for additional data collection. POM, Inc., The Parktel 2.0 – both a single and a double space meter A smart meter developed by original parking meter company, manufactured in the USA. Village of Scarsdale staff made the contractual arrangements for each of the meter technologies to provide test equipment, free of charge, for a three-month testing period. Each company would install and remove test equipment to cover 16 on street parking spaces. The quantity of 16 parking spaces was selected because it is considered the maximum recommended distance a parker should have to walk to a pay station – 8 car spaces. Therefore, because two pay stations were in the pilot test, there could only be 8 parking spaces on either side of each of these pay station. To maintain consistency among all test meters (single pace meters and pay stations), each meter technology company was responsible for 16 parking spaces. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 4  Test Meter Equipment SINGLE & DOUBLE SPACE METERS IPS – M5 POM – Parktel 2.0 MULTISPACE/PAYSTATION METERS T2 – Luke 2 MacKay – Tango Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 5 Once the test equipment was determined, the consultant worked closely with the Village of Scarsdale staff and prepared a pilot test implementation plan. The plan (shown below) was used to keep all parties focused on the timeline and completion of tasks necessary for an orderly start of the pilot test. Project Implementation Plan Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 6 Determining the Pilot Test Meter Locations During the pilot test it was important not only to maintain consistency in the number of parking spaces for each test meter, but also to provide consistency in the type of location where each test meter was installed. With 16 parking spaces allocated to each of four test meters, the Scarsdale pilot test consisted of 64 test meter locations in the business district adjacent to the Village train station. An important pilot test consideration was to select 64 parking space locations with similar characteristics. The first step in developing the map/plan of the test meter locations was determining an accurate map and count of existing parking meters. The consultant took a detailed inventory of the existing meters in the shopping district and mapped the locations of the meters as either a single pole meter or two meters on one pole. This information was necessary as some of the test meters were double meters that were installed on a single pole. With the base map of meter locations completed, the test meters were able to be allocated. Utmost care was taken so that all test meters were located in similarly high traffic areas. All locations were selected within a compact core business district. For example, although there were several parking spaces along a road adjacent to the Scarsdale railroad station, these parking spaces were not selected as pilot test locations because it was determined that a parker in this location would have to cross a street to enter the core shopping area, and this additional distance from shops may make those parking spaces less desirable to a parker. This could potentially have an adverse effect on the revenue gathered at these meters. It was also known that during the pilot test a Farmer’s Market would be held in the shopping area and several metered parking spaces would be unavailable for use during the day of the market. These parking spaces were also excluded from the pilot test. Side streets in the shopping district that had several vacant businesses were also avoided. All test meter locations had to be on a street adjacent to active businesses. Another locational constraint was where the pay stations could be positioned, as continuous metered spaces were required to both the right and left of the pay station. In an actual pay station installation, there would be a large number of paystations located in an area. However, in the pilot test there was only one paystation from two different vendors. This required careful placement in order to have the paystation located in an optimal location – on a busy street, with enough continuous metered spaces on both sides of the paystation. In the Village of Scarsdale pilot test area there were two streets that were best suited to this arrangement – Chase Road and Spencer Place. In addition to having sufficient parking spaces near the pay stations, care was Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 7 also taken so that there was sufficient room for parkers to stand at the pay station, with no barriers to accessibility and no hazards that could impact people waiting to make a payment. Lastly, care was also taken so that no existing ADA parking space was included as a test meter. Determining the Control Meter Locations In addition to the 64 test meter locations, an additional 16 on street parking meters were selected to serve as control meters in the study. These meters would be evaluated to develop a baseline comparison to the new meter technologies being tested. There were no changes made to these meters. They were not identified as control meters to the public. The only identifier that was provided was a small green ½” decal on the meter for the coin collection agent to be able to identify the control meters for a separate coin collection. The same locational criteria that was used in determining the test meter locations also applied to the selection of the control meter locations. This was necessary to ensure the consistency of the meter collection data. Locations of Test and Control Meters Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 8 Due to the amount of time required for a separate control meter coin collection, it was determined that the separate coin collection would only take place for a two-week period. The data from these two weeks would be averaged and used as an indicator of the existing level of meter operations and revenue collection. Data collection All of the smart meter technologies installed for the pilot test were capable of recording all transactions, both coin and credit card electronically. In addition to this, each meter technology would also record any errors or difficulties that the meter encountered from invalid credit cards, or coin jams. This meant that for the pilot test equipment, the data collected on revenue, transactions and errors were recorded automatically by the test equipment and was not subject to any human collection or counting errors. This information was available in the form of meter revenue, transaction and error reports. In addition to data gathered by the test meters, the pilot test was also interested in the views of Scarsdale’s parkers. In order to capture this information, a survey was developed with input from Village staff. This was an online survey that could be accessed using a QR code directly from the parking meter. A test meter customer was able to scan a code posted on the meter with a QR reader on a smartphone to be directed to the survey page. The online survey was also accessible from the Village of Scarsdale website and was publicized on flyers and signs. Recognizing that not all respondents may have access or interest in taking the survey online, a phone survey was also available. The questions on the phone survey were identical to the online survey. The phone number for the phone survey was also listed on each test meter, as well as the Village website and on flyers and posters. Although the test meters were installed on varying dates during the end of September 2017, it is important to note that meter performance data was only analyzed for the dates from October 2 to December 31. Any revenue, transaction or error data prior to October 2 was ignored. Having the equipment installed prior to the start of the pilot test provided local parkers with an opportunity to be exposed to the equipment and become familiar with their operation. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 9  Public Outreach Over the past 80 years, the parking meter has become a familiar piece of street furniture in communities around the world. Local residents have a well-established routine for using a parking meter. Therefore, making a change in meter technology is a decision that often generates strong opinions from both residents and business owners alike. Because of this, any technology that is planned for adoption should have community input. In order to encourage parker participation in the pilot test survey, a strong effort was made to educate and inform local parkers of the purpose and importance of participating in the pilot test. Prior to the installation of the test equipment, there was a press release to announce the start of the pilot test. Information on how to access the online and telephone survey was presented in a variety of ways such as: 1) Two print ads that included images of the test equipment appeared in the local newspaper The Scarsdale Inquirer. The popularity of the paper as a source of information of community events and information was very valuable in reaching a wider audience than just individuals who might encounter the test equipment by a chance parking encounter. The print ad also provided the web address and phone number to access the survey so that a parker could view the equipment images and more conveniently respond to the survey after the parking session. It should be noted that following the appearance of the second print ad, there was a corresponding spike in survey responses. 2) A large 3’ x 4’ sign with bright color images of the four test meters and how to access the survey was on display in the Scarsdale Village Hall (2nd floor) near the window to pay parking tickets. 3) Postcards & flyers with information on the pilot test and how to access the survey were printed and available for distribution to the public. 4) A Farmer’s Market took place on Thursdays in the shopping district near the test meters in October and November. The consultant was present on several days of the Farmer’s Market with a large 3’ x 4’ sign with bright color images of the meters to talk with visitors, answer questions and encourage participation. Flyers were also distributed at the Farmer’s Market. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 10  5) Outreach was also made to local merchants to answer questions and explain the pilot test. The consultant visited many of the local businesses that had test meters located outside their shop. Postcards/flyers were provided to the merchants to distribute to their customers to encourage meter feedback on the survey. Which meter for Scarsdale? Take the survey… CALL 1-800-410-7120 ! 4 ORANGE YELLOW BLUE GREEN ! 1 ! 2 ! 3 ! or go online: www.surveymonkey.com/r/scarsdale-metertest Example of Pilot Test Information Post Card 6) There was encouragement for survey takers to provide input on each of the four meter technologies tested. A free gift was promoted for survey takers who completed four surveys, identified by voluntarily providing a phone number for verification. This reward was to be provided at the end of the study. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 11  Public Outreach Examples Scarsdale Village Hall – Display Sign Scarsdale Inquirer Print Ad Scarsdale Farmer Market – Consultant on hand to Discuss the Project with Residents Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 12  Survey Respondents After a three-month survey collection period from October 1 to December 31, 2017 a total of 309 surveys were submitted. This included 289 surveys that were completed online and 20 telephone surveys. In reviewing the survey data, 5 surveys were initiated but not completed past the first 3-4 questions and were excluded from analysis. This resulted in a total 304 surveys used in the analysis. The questions asked on the phone survey were identical to the online survey. The raw data collected from the phone survey was combined with the data from the online survey. The survey data was exported, cleaned and formatted for analysis in Excel. This data was then exported once again as a CSV file to Tableau for analysis and the preparation of charts and graphs. Survey Respondent’s Reasons for Visiting Scarsdale The overwhelming majority of the survey respondents identified as residents of the Village of Scarsdale by 75%. They also reported the primary reason for visiting was for retail purposes such as shopping. The image presented above has several smaller nodes that indicate a combination of reasons the visitors made to the shopping area. This might include a combination of purposes such as visiting with friends and dining. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 13 This was also a highly frequent group of visitors to the Scarsdale shopping district. The frequency with which the survey respondents visited the Scarsdale shopping district was cited as: More than 4 times a week = 52% of respondents 1-4 times a week = 35% of respondents In order to encourage respondents to complete the survey and not become frustrated by survey length, a strong effort was made to keep the survey brief. Because of this, respondents were not asked to provide highly detailed demographic information (i.e. gender, age, race, income) as the survey sought to better understand the respondents as a group based on their parking preferences. Survey takers were asked to rate their perceived frequency of paying with quarters as well as their perceived frequency of selecting a credit card for payment. Plotting these two factors in the heat map presented below indicates that a strong component of users feel that they will never use a credit card at a parking meter – as illustrated as 66% while always using quarters. This is by far the strongest preference on the heat map. Elsewhere 40 – 50 % of the other categories are more distributed grouping. Heat Map of Respondent’s Views of Coin versus Credit Card Usage Quarters Total1 CC pay Total1 Always Often Sometimes Rarely Never Always 11.43% 31.43% 37.14% 20.00% Often 1.25% 30.00% 43.75% 21.25% 3.75% Sometimes 6.56% 50.82% 34.43% 6.56% 1.64% Rarely 37.93% 55.17% 6.90% Never 66.67% 24.44% 4.44% 4.44% Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 14  Meter Evaluation Components User Preferences of the Test Meters In the survey, there were four key questions to evaluate the user’s experience with the test parking meters. The responses provided by each survey taker were in a direct relationship to the individual meter they were rating. Therefore, if a respondent selected a “Blue” test meter, all survey responses were for the Blue test meter. A respondent could not rate multiple meters in one survey session. Respondents were encouraged to rate each of the four test meters, but in order to do this they would have to initiate a new survey session for each meter type. Was this meter easy to use? Did this meter function properly? Yes Yes 50% 45.16% 35% 33.52% 30.11% % of Total Number of Records 40% 30% % of Total Number of Records 25% 29.84% 30% 21.02% 20% 15.34% 20% 15% 16.94% 10% 10% 8.06% 5% 0% 0% ORANGE YELLOW BLUE GREEN ORANGE YELLOW BLUE GREEN Would you be Satisfied if this were Installed? Is this meter aesthetically appropriate? YES aesthetic 50% 49.54% 40.79% 40% % of Total Number of Records 35.53% % of Total Number of Records 40% 30% 30.28% 30% 20% 20% 15.79% 14.68% 10% 10% 7.89% 5.50% 0% 0% ORANGE YELLOW BLUE GREEN ORANGE YELLOW BLUE GREEN Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 15 Based on the survey ratings of the four test meters as illustrated in the results shown above, the IPS single space parking meter received the highest rating in all four categories. It is important to also note that the POM single space meter followed close behind and was also favorably rated when compared to the two multi-space pay station meters. The greatest difference in user ratings between the two single space meters tested (IPS vs POM) was on the question was this meter “Easy to use?” and “Would you be satisfied if this were installed”. It is important to note that there were six locations in the pilot test (covering 12 parking spaces) where POM supplied a “Double Meter” that comprised one meter head on a single pole that covered two parking spaces. In addition to this, there were four parking space locations where POM provided a traditional single meter. The Village of Scarsdale was interested in testing the double meter head style because this can have a lower overall equipment purchase price and can also provide a more streamlined on street appearance with a visually more compact meter. Overall, the physical appearance of a single vs double meter was not very obvious. The double meter required users to perform an additional step in the parking transaction process – selecting which metered parking space they were parked in – a space on the right or on the left of the meter pole. POM Double space meter interface POM single space meter interface The presence of the POM double meters created some confusion for parkers who expressed uncertainty over which button on the meter needed to be pressed to select their parking space location. Some parkers expressed concern that they accidentally paid for the wrong parking space. This lead to an increase in user confusion and frustration. It is believed that the presence of the POM “Double Meter” spaces resulted in a lower user experience survey rating for the POM Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 16 meters overall. Because of this, it is important to note that if ALL of the POM meters provided in the test were the traditional single space meters, it is very possible that their overall user experience ratings would be higher than what was shown here. It is also important to note that while having to select which parking space the double meter covered was a new experience for Scarsdale parkers, if these meters were selected for installation, in time users would become more comfortable with making this parking space selection. Control Meter Revenue Collection Results One of the most interesting findings of the pilot test was the very high operational performance of the Village of Scarsdale’s existing meter equipment and coin collection operations and equipment maintenance. This was noted by the fact that the revenue totals from the existing control meters closely matched the performance of a single space “smart meter” that was in the pilot test that exhibited an approximately 98% - 100% error free performance. Coin Collection Totals from Existing (non-test) Meters Amounts for 16 meters only Existing Control Meter Revenue Coin Collection Existing Meters Day Oct. 23-28 Nov. 13 - 18 Mon 120.71 146.51 Tue 114.36 148.70 Wed 133.85 126.72 Thur 136.80 124.74 Fri & Sat 239.36 193.36 One Week Totals 745.08 740.03 While this finding is certainly good news for the hard work of Village of Scarsdale staff in maintaining equipment, it also sets a very high standard for the test equipment to match. Meter down time, whether due to coin jams or software issues not only creates angst and frustration among parkers who fear a ticket, but it also creates a loss in expected revenue. This is important to note because many communities struggle to maintain aging meter equipment and maintain a good coin collection cycle to keep meters fully operational. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 17 Test Meter Revenue Collection Results At the end of ninety days the revenue collection totals for the four test meter technologies were gathered and are presented on the chart below. It is important to note that there was one week in December where “Free Parking” was provided at all parking spaces in the shopping district. Based on the performance of the meters up until that point, a one week “Free Parking Adjustment” was included on the chart below, highlighted in blue, to normalize the December parking totals for comparison. This amount was calculated by averaging the revenue total for the full month of October and November and dividing the average monthly total by 4 for the number of weeks in a month to get a weekly average amount. This calculation provides a rough approximation of the revenue lost during the holiday “Free Parking” week. Pilot Test Meter Monthly Revenue Totals (for 16 Parking Spaces each) Pilot Test Meter Revenue Single (or Double) Meter Multispace Paystation Meter 2017 IPS POM* T2** MacKay*** MONTH Coin C card Coin C card Coin C card Coin C card October 2551.50 842.50 2413.25 705.25 1607.50 1102.75 1101.50 1764.15 November 2462.25 800.25 2317.95 526.07 1747.75 1268.75 775.25 1277.65 December (1 week FREE) 1848.25 521.75 1658.90 340.00 963.75 1059.50 296.50 566.60 Actual 3 Month Revenue Total 6862.00 2164.50 6390.10 1571.32 4319.00 3431.00 2173.25 3608.40 Dec Free Parking week adjustment (AVG of Oct & Nov)/4 weeks) 626.72 205.34 591.40 153.92 419.41 296.44 234.59 380.23 7488.72 2369.84 6981.50 1725.24 4738.41 3727.44 2407.84 3988.63 Adjusted (Coin & Credit Card) 3 MO Revenue Total: $9,858.56 $8,706.74 $8,465.84 $6,396.47 *POM meters had both single and double space meters and some users reported confusion with the double meters that may have contributed to a lower revenue collection amount. **The T2 paystation had experienced some downtime due to a battery configuration issue. ***The MacKay paystation had experienced some operational downtime due to a service issue. The revenue totals for each meter type above are also presented in the four charts below to examine the performance of each test meter type in comparison to the control meter estimated monthly average revenue. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 18  Single Space Smart Meters – Pilot Test Revenue (Monthly totals for 16 parking spaces) Pilot Test Meter 1 - IPS Pilot Test Meter 2 – POM (single space or double space meter) Oct Nov Dec $4,000 $3,500 3,118 $3,000 $3,000 2,844 Revenue (16 spaces) 2,744 $2,500 2,413 2,318 2,250 $2,000 $1,500 $1,000 705 526 494 $500 $0 2_coin 2_card Meter 2_coin 2_card Meter 2_coin 2_card Meter 2 Tot.. 2 Tot.. 2 Tot.. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 19  Multi space Pay stations– Pilot Test Revenue (Monthly totals for 16 parking spaces) Pilot Test Meter 3 – T2 Oct Nov Dec 4000 3500 3,000 3,017 3000 2,711 2,739 Revenue (16 Meters) 2500 2000 1,748 1,608 1500 1,383 1,356 1,269 1,103 1000 500 0 3_coin 3_card Meter 3 3_coin 3_card Meter 3 3_coin 3_card Meter 3 Total .. Total .. Total .. Pilot Test Meter 4 – MacKay Oct Nov Dec 4K 3,000 3K 2,866 Revenue (16 meters) 2,053 2K 1,764 1,478 1,278 1,102 1K 947 775 531 0K 4_card 4_coin Meter 4 4_card 4_coin Meter 4 4_card 4_coin Meter 4 Total .. Total .. Total .. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 20  Operational Issues Encountered The installation of new equipment is not always trouble free. Many of the problems encountered can be attributed to getting the equipment properly installed and configured. This was an area where vendor support was critical. The smart meter equipment is also capable of generating error reports. This is not something that is available with the traditional non-smart meters. This enables meter maintenance staff to more effectively troubleshoot equipment. Smart meters can also send error alert text messages to meter maintenance staff so that problems such as coin blockages or full coin canisters can be corrected in a timely manner. It is important to note that maintaining equipment in a fully functioning manner is important for revenue collection as well as to provide high quality service to local parkers. If the equipment isn’t working, parkers are fearful of being issued a ticket and will feel frustrated if they need to relocate their vehicle in order to avoid a fine. At times, the issues that arose with the test meters were sporadic and appeared after equipment was successfully operating for a while. These situations required vendor support to troubleshoot and resolve and in most cases were able to be remedied remotely with a software re-boot. Examples of Meter Equipment Requiring a Re-boot The meter error report data for the IPS single space meters is presented below. The IPS had the best error free performance among the pilot test meters. However, because each company defines an error in different terms (for example POM lists “invalid” transaction, but the reason for the invalid transaction is not known) these reporting variations makes a direct side by side comparison of the meter error data not possible. Also, in some situations, the equipment error Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 21 encountered was of a catastrophic operational issue (for example battery power lost) which rendered the equipment nonfunctional. When a nonfunctional situation occurs with a single space meter, the end results are limited. However, when a pay station becomes non-functional, the impact is severe especially in the case of the pilot test where only one pay station was available for 16 spaces. In an actual full-scale installation, multiple pay station locations would be available to accept payment, which would reduce the impact. Because the pilot test pay stations cover 16 parking spaces, the impact of their inability to accept parking payments is very visible in the revenue and transaction data gathered. This is an important point to understand because it also explains the vast differences in revenue totals presented by the different meter technologies. Essentially, revenue totals should be the same across all the meters tested, especially when compared with the control meters. The degree to which a test meter does not meet the control meter revenue is a factor of the amount of meter downtime experienced due to service and operational issues. If a meter is not working, it cannot collect revenue. The full financial impact of this downtime would not have been known without the collection of the control data or the comparison with the single space meters. IPS Test Meter (Orange) Equipment Error Data OCT NOV DEC # Coin Acceptor Blockages 5 4 2 # Card Reader Blockages 0 0 0 Equipment % of Up Time 99.73 98.34 99.93 In addition to this, there were difficulties associated with the learning curve in mastering the new equipment. In Scarsdale, this had to do with the change to quarters only for a parking transaction as opposed to accepting all coin denominations. Although “Quarters Only” was posted on the meters with some success, this was another point of confusion for parkers. Lastly, it is interesting to note that the Scarsdale pilot test revenue data for the single space meters versus the pay stations was atypical. In many parking situations, pay stations tend to better perform on revenue due to the ability for pay stations to generate additional revenue from a new parker making a full parking payment on top of “leftover” time that may be left behind in a multi-space parking space. For example, with the Blue T2 pay station, this amount of additional revenue during the pilot test was approximately $150 per month for 16 parking spaces. Normally, this helps pay stations outperform single space meters for revenue. However, this did not occur in the Scarsdale. One reason can be pay station overall performance and the other reason can be parker pay station avoidance. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 22  Examples of Operational Issues Encountered Meter not working Pay station not working Coin Blockages Credit Card Payment Issues Confusing instructions Customer Avoidance Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 23  Cost Estimates for Equipment Implementation Unlike traditional “non-smart” parking meters, smart meter technologies incur monthly operating costs in order to transmit data from the individual meter locations wirelessly to the meter management system and to allow for credit card processing. A good analogy is to think of the smart meter acting like a cell phone with a monthly service bill. There are benefits to the improved data collection capabilities of this technology, from highly accurate revenue collection totals, parking usage data and real time service alerts. In some communities, the ability to increase cashless parking payment options also leads to improved fiscal accountability. These costs cannot be avoided when smart meter technologies are adopted and typically tend to be higher for the installation of single space smart meters than for a paystations simply because of the number of individual devices installed, transmitting data. These costs must be taken into account on future municipal budgets. How are these costs determined? One of the main benefits of conducting a parking technology pilot test is in being able to more accurately gauge the level of parking transactions that will occur and using this data to make projections. Credit Card Transaction Costs Every merchant knows that a cost of doing business entails the fees paid to be able to accept a credit card payment. In this report, this fee is discussed as a blend of the payment required by Visa and MasterCard (or other providers) as well charges from the merchant processor to cover expenses of processing and administering the charge. Some of these fees may be based on a percentage of the total purchase, some may be fixed, and others may be government regulated. Most of all they may vary from one merchant processor to the next. In addition to this, there is a gateway charge to transmit the credit card transaction data which typically hovers around $0.13 per transaction. It is important to note that these costs are variable and may change. In this report, all of these costs are combined to an average cost per parking transaction. By combining these variable costs into a blended transaction number, cost projections can be more easily developed based on the projected level of parking transactions at the Village’s parking meters. Actual transaction counts from the pilot test data is used in this report to develop these projections. Simply looking at one cost without taking into account the others does not present a complete picture. In this report, the blended credit card transaction costs were calculated as: Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 24 Blended Credit Card Transaction Fee = Average Credit Card Statement Fee per Transaction + Internet gateway fee per transaction x Estimated Number of Parking Credit Card Purchases The challenge that smart parking meters pose is that the credit card fee structure was developed to meet the needs of medium and large purchases - not a $0.75 parking transaction. Because of this, municipalities must pay close attention to the effect that these charges have on their bottom line. A high credit card processing transaction fee can erode anticipated parking meter revenue expectations. The tangible benefit of conducting a parking meter pilot test is the collection of transaction data from the temporary deployment of smart meters in a community’s targeted location. This information would not be otherwise available without conducting a test and it provides a municipality with the most effective means for forecasting future credit card transaction costs. Even though many municipalities may have parking kiosks in parking lots that accept credit cards, measurements from these locations are not the same as the frequent quick turnover that typically occurs in an on-street downtown shopping and dining district. Because of this, the number of transactions generated at a long-term parking structure where a parker may stay for 2 + hours is not comparable to the frequent parking turnover in a downtown installation, where an average stay may be 45 minutes or sometimes much less. Using the transaction counts from the highest performing smart meter in the pilot test (IPS) in order to use the highest pilot test credit card transaction amounts experienced, the estimated costs for credit card transactions for the Village of Scarsdale are outlined in the chart below. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 25 Based on the calculation presented above, the Village of Scarsdale may experience 162,000 credit card transactions a year if 270 smart meters were installed. Using this number of transactions (162,000) and multiplying it by the potential blended credit card and gateway transactions costs that may be charged, the chart below illustrates the yearly cost in fees that may be realized. When actual credit card statements from for two existing Village of Scarsdale accounts were reviewed it was determined that the average credit card fee per transaction was $0.09 with one processor account and $0.15 on the other. While part of this is based on the amount of the transaction purchase, it provides a useful range for estimating purposes. Combining these amounts with a gateway charge that can range from $0.10 to $0.13 the Village of Scarsdale is currently experiencing an estimated fee between $0.28 to $0.53 per transaction. These amounts are comparable to those experienced by other communities and are presented on the chart above to illustrate both the HIGH and LOW range of possible transaction costs. In order to address these new operational costs, communities typically implement a minimum required charge at a smart meter for a credit card transaction. This approach was also done during the Scarsdale Pilot Test. A minimum charge of $1 was applied to all credit card transactions, even if a parker desired less time when paying with a credit card. This policy Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 26 generated the second highest percentage of comments by survey takers. There was a general dislike of having to pay more for using a credit card. It is also very important to point out that in accepting credit card payments with a minimum $1.00 purchase amount there is a revenue increase that a credit card average payment will generate above an average coin payment amount. While a portion of this can be attributed to a customer paying more to ensure that they will not get a ticket, another factor is due to the presence of the required minimum credit card transaction fee. In the Scarsdale pilot test results, the top performing IPS smart meter exhibited a $20 per meter per month “bump up” in the revenue charts. The estimated $48,000 in additional revenue that these meters produced by accepting credit cards with a $1.00 minimum purchase is sufficient to cover the full potential costs of the credit card of a LOW blended credit card transaction fee but is slightly insufficient if transaction fee costs are at the HIGH end of the range presented above. It is also important to note that in a multi-space meter installation there is an additional increase in potential revenue from a new parker pulling into a parking space not being able to “piggy back” onto meter time left behind by the previous parker. In the Scarsdale test location of the best performing multi-space location (T2), this additional revenue averaged about $150 per month for 16 parking spaces, or about $9.00 per parking space per month during the pilot test. This is in addition to any increase that would also be experienced as a result of the $1.00 credit card minimum. Therefore, on an install of 270 parking spaces on a multi-space installation this additional revenue would be: $9 per space per month X 12 months X 270 parking spaces = $29,160 It is important to note, that this additional “piggyback” revenue in the Scarsdale pilot test as described above was not sufficient to bring the overall pay station revenue totals above those of the single space smart meters. This can be a result of operational problems encountered which had a significant revenue impact. It is important to note, that had the test equipment been fully operational at all times, these revenue totals would be higher. While smart meters are often touted in terms of the technology being able to bring in additional revenue to a community, certainly enough to sufficient to offset their costs, these increases in revenue are also more noticeable in communities where the existing coin collection practices or meter operations and maintenance may not be operating at peak performance. That situation does not appear to exist in the Village of Scarsdale. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 27  Estimated Smart Single Meter Revenue and Expenses for Scarsdale All Per Year Estimated Meter Annual Revenue (270 Meters) ($43 per meter per week * 270 meters *50 weeks) 580,500 Total Yearly Revenue $580,500 Estimated Meter Annual Expenses (270 Meters) 270 meters @ $593 (delivered & installed) = $160,000 Equipment Lease Cost ($160,000 @6% for 10 years) 20,584 Total 10-year Lease Expense ($205,840 -$160,000) = $45,870 Blended Transaction Fee ($0.45 with a 4% yearly increase) (50 trans per month per meter *270 meters *12 month) 72,900 Meter Management software fees (2% yearly increase) 26,000 ($8 * 270 meters * 12 months = $25,920) Total Yearly Expenses $119,484 Estimated Yearly Revenue - Expenses $461,016 NOTE: Assumes no change in current VOS meter staffing costs or increase in meter rates. Capital Equipment Costs The typical lifespan of a new “smart” meter purchased today is about 8 years. This is far shorter than the older equipment that is being replaced. Using an estimated capital cost of about $593 per smart meter and a need for 270 metered spaces, the one-time equipment purchase cost is approximately $160,000. This is an approximate cost for single space smart meters including delivery and installation. In comparison, the replacement costs for 270 meters in the style of Scarsdale’s existing meters would be approximately $175 per meter for a total capital cost of $47,500. An additional $20,000 could enable these meters to be upgraded to credit card meters from the same manufacturer if desired in the future. This would be approximately $90,000 less than the replacement cost of smart meters. However, pricing and technology changes rapidly. Ongoing Operational Costs Once smart meter technology is installed, there is an ongoing monthly charge per device for the meter management software that supports the smart meter technology. Smart meters cannot Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 28 be installed without also having the meter management system. However, some more advanced smart meter options like built in or pole mounted sensors incur an additional monthly fee on top of the basic meter management software. In some communities without pay stations or smart meters this is a new budget line item. This can be estimated at about $5-10 per meter per month and the operating cost for a pay station can range from $35 to $60 per pay station per month. Parking Payment Apps The pilot test did not include the use of parking payment apps as a payment option at the test meters due to an attempt to minimize the number of variables being tested at the meter as well as to keep the level of instructions that the parker faced to a minimum. However, parking app usage was addressed in questions in the pilot test survey. Among survey respondents it was found that 33% had at least one parking app that many reported several apps were present simultaneously. This is an important item to note as there are several parking app providers. The chart below illustrates the percentage of survey takers who listed the following apps. Parking Apps Currently Used by Survey Takers 8.07% Spot Hero 17.39% Pay By Phone 11.18% 27.95% Pango Park Mobile 9.94% Passport 25.47% ParkNYC In general, app usage on smartphones has increased substantially from year to year. This is also the case for parking payment apps. The convenience of being able to make a cashless payment, as well as to add time to a parking purchase from the comfort of your vehicle Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 29 without standing in the rain and snow makes this a very compelling technology to consider. Also, users can add additional time to their parking transaction – up to the maximum time allowed, from their phone. This means that a customer does not need to leave a restaurant, shop or salon early to add a coin to the meter to avoid a parking ticket. This can be done remotely thru the parking app. While parking apps also have a gateway charge in addition to the credit card processing costs described above, the specific blend of how these charges can be passed to the user rather than the Village enable the community to more finely manage these expenses. Although apps do not have a large capital expense, there are several factors to consider in determining cost. Most communities cover the transaction costs while the user pays a convenience fee. The convenience fee is a payment (usually $0.20 to $0.35) to the app provider for the service. Some communities like Seattle cover all of these costs (transaction and convenience) while other places like Buffalo cover none of them. This provides a community more flexibility in managing transaction costs. Parking apps can also be installed on existing meter technology that reduces a communities’ capital outlay. However, this is a solution that has some drawbacks. For example, when a parking app is added to an existing meter the violation flag will not change. It can change if the meter is a smart meter. This is a situation that some users may find troubling at first especially in areas where there is a very pro-active parking enforcement. While the parking payment purchase information is directly transmitted to the enforcement officer’s hand-held device, the community needs to be informed that not seeing the violation flag change is not a sign that the app purchase was not accepted. In general, the parking apps do provide customers with a proof of payment or receipt so that if there was an enforcement error, it can be contested. Another aspect of a parking app installation on existing meters is that customers who desire to maintain the simple coin operations of the existing meters do not experience a change. Other parking customers who want a cashless/coinless payment system are able to adopt it. During the outreach period, the consultant was frequently asked about payment apps and if they would be available. It was explained that while the pilot test was focused specifically on the hardware question, parking apps were also a Village consideration. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 30  Based on Data from a Westchester County, NY Community In the graph above, the rate of increase in parking app usage is presented as an illustration of the strong growth in parking app adoption among parkers. It is important to note that the app in use in this community was not listed by any of the Scarsdale pilot test survey respondents. If a parking app were selected from among the ones that survey users report as currently using, these percentages are likely to increase. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 31  Other Parking Considerations There were several concerns raised about parking from both the survey takers as well at conversations had with merchants and residents during the outreach period of the survey. Often, a resident or a merchant was thankful for the opportunity to provide feedback and list these concerns. There was also the sense frequently mentioned in conversations with residents that they were thankful that the Village of Scarsdale was making a strong effort to investigate these issues. The last question in the survey was an open-ended question that asked “Anything else you would like to say”? Survey respondents were not limited by size in their responses. Approximately 40% of the survey takers left a comment. In reading the comments, several key issues began to emerge. A list of key concerns was developed, and each comment was read and noted if these issues were mentioned. The frequency of the concerns noted are shown below: The Most Frequently Mentioned Parking Concerns The two main concerns that were raised repeatedly by survey takers were “No Pay stations” at 17% and the “Overpayment” issue at 13%. In general, while some parkers expressed their support of pay stations, most of the feedback received was not in support of pay stations. Many commenters reinforced this with outlining the difficulties and inconvenience that parkers feel when it is raining and they must use an unsheltered pay station, or when they have a coffee or Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 32 other items in their hand and they are trying to press all the buttons to make a payment. Many were upset about the amount of time it takes to stand in line waiting for someone to pay as well as difficulties that seniors or individuals with mobility issues have using the machines. In fact, the other frequently noted concerns of “Inconvenient”, “Time Wasting” and “Unattractive” were also frequently cited concerns that survey takers had with regard to their pay station experience. Top 10 Concerns Cited by Survey Takers No paystations, 17% All others, 23% Overpayment, Readability, 4% 13% Unattractive, 4% Time-wasting, 5% Confusing, 11% APP , 5% Inconvenient, Coins, 5% 6% Broken, 6% The overpayment issue, that was the second most frequently stated issue that concerned survey participants was a composite of the three factors listed below: 1) $1 minimum purchase amount for a credit card purchase. 2) On one style of pay station, there was a dollar bill accepter, but it did not provide change if you selected less than the $1.00 amount of parking, this was a concern for some parkers even though the pay stations had signage that change would not be provided. 3) All meters only accepted quarters as a minimum. This was a change from current meters that accepted nickels as well as dimes. This was a concern for some parkers who did not like having to pay for more meter time than they need. Often during outreach and in the survey, some respondents questioned why Scarsdale should even have parking meters at all. While some communities do forgo the option, the answer often lies in the availability of other nearby parking resources. In a small downtown, if the long-term Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 33 parking options are at a good distance from the core commercial district, there is a great disincentive for people to walk the extra distance, and instead the high demand parking space will be used for several hours. While time limits can be enforced through license plate reading enforcement technologies, this reduction in turnover increases the hardship to maintain frequent turn over in parking supply for businesses. It is important to note, that Village staff reported receiving business owner complaints when implementing the “Free Parking” week in December. The concern businesses cited was that cars were parking for extended periods of time and customers had difficulty finding parking availability for coming into the shops. Parking meters encourages this turn over in parking spaces. Other key concerns raised included a desire to see the downtown parking extended to 2 hours from 90 minutes. Many respondents in the survey along with those who discussed the issue with the consultant during community outreach at the Farmer’s Market mentioned this issue. Enforcement was also often viewed as being very proactive. This was a situation that distressed several residents that the consultant spoke with. There was particular concern that with pay stations, while a parker was waiting in line to make a payment that they were vulnerable to receiving a ticket. This was an issue that generated concern over the deployment of pay stations in a busy downtown area. The issues of “confusing” and “readability” were issues that more frequently impacted single space meters as well as pay stations. In general, there was concern over the amount of text to read when making a parking selection and in particular the performance of the individual smart meters that served two parking spaces. This required a customer to select which space they were parked in. This was a new process for many parkers and it generated confusion over which button should be pressed on the meter to select this function. Currently the parking meters in Scarsdale accept nickels and dimes along with quarters. This was something that also generated a very strong response primarily in direct conversations with merchants. It was expressed that making the change to quarters only created a situation where patrons had to ask merchants to provide quarters in order to pay. This was not only inconvenient for the merchant but it also created stress on the part of the parker to worry if they would be issued a violation while trying to get the proper coin denomination. Recognizing that smart meter technology is also capable of accepting all coins like the existing meters and since there does not appear to be difficulties with coin collection, whether to accept quarters only is an item that merits further discussion. If meters were quarters only, they would not need to be emptied as frequently which would have a positive effect on staff time and enable village staff to focus on services other than labor intensive coin collection. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 34  Conclusion There are few municipalities where the topic of parking is not passionately debated. Parking is the lifeblood of a vibrant downtown with thriving businesses and a necessity to providing customer access. It is a matter of convenience and accessibility for residents. A meter’s ability to generate revenue for municipal services cannot be ignored. Parking meters have undergone transformative changes over the last decade from simply being a mechanical coin box to becoming a real time data source to manage a community’s parking resources. Whether it is a single space smart meter or a pay station, these parking payment devices can accept multiple forms of payment as society increasing moves to an internet connected cashless society. This societal move toward cashless payment options moves the parking technology discussion from one of coins and credit cards to include a discussion of parking payment apps which can be used with any type of parking meter. Selecting the appropriate way forward for a community is a mix of these factors. There is no one solution that is best for all communities but having information available based on a community’s unique characteristics is a tremendous step forward in being able to make an appropriate decision. In this report, there were some findings in the Village of Scarsdale that were unique to this community, and may not be able to be replicated in other communities. Community demographics, level of meter support staff, arrangement of meters, mix of businesses are all variables that can make the results of one pilot test different from another. In addition to this, meter technologies are constantly improving and evolving so that the equipment tested during the last three months of 2017 may not be the same configuration or version of equipment tested or installed six months later. Because of this, it is important not to view this report as an indicator of how any of the parking meter technologies tested in the Village of Scarsdale would necessarily perform in another community. For example, factors such as the proper configuration of the equipment software and battery settings that may have had a negative impact on a meter technology performance in this test, can be corrected and may not necessarily be a performance issue in another community. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 35  Today’s Meter Decision Making Environment The findings of this report only reflect what transpired in the Village of Scarsdale over a 90 day period from October to December in 2017. The results of this pilot test cannot be transferred to what would occur in any other meter installation, in any other community. The results of this pilot test cannot guarantee any future performance of any meter equipment that may be selected. All information presented here is based on what was observed and recorded during the test period. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 36  Acknowledgments This pilot test would not have been possible without the support of the Village of Scarsdale Board of Trustees, and the Village Manager Office and the Village of Scarsdale Parking, Enforcement and DPW staff who were critical in making this project possible and providing hands on assistance. Of special note is the assistance of Ms. Ingrid Richards for her role in leading the Village of Scarsdale pilot test project and working closely with the project consultant to ensure a successful project completion. The companies that agreed to be a part of this pilot test: T2, IPS, POM & MacKay are all to be thanked and commended for their assistance in providing equipment and support to this project. Implementing a pilot test requires a high level of vendor commitment and these firms all provided a good deal of time and resources to provide, install and support the test equipment. Without their willingness to participate, the pilot test would not have been possible. Lastly, the Village of Scarsdale residents, businesses and extended parking community are all to be thanked for their participation in the survey and willingness to provide feedback. Their interest and insights were critical in the development of this report. Pilot Test Consultant Mary Shiffer conducted this pilot test on behalf of the Village of Scarsdale as an independent consultant. Ms. Shiffer had also conducted a parking meter pilot test in the Village of Mamaroneck NY in 2016 and has more recently worked extensively with the Village of Mamaroneck on researching and implementing parking and capital improvement projects. Ms. Shiffer served the Village of Oak Park Illinois as a Transportation Commissioner and had previously worked in facilities, operations and research at Harvard University, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the US Army Corp of Engineers Construction Engineering Research Lab. She holds both a Bachelor and Master of Science degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign and has completed post graduate coursework in Administration and Management at Harvard University, LEED & PMP coursework at the University of British Columbia and most recently Data Analytics at General Assembly in NYC. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 37  Appendix Survey On the following pages is the survey that was used in the meter pilot test. In order to save space, the questions are combined in this report. This is not how the questions appeared to the survey taker. In the online survey, each question was presented individually. The respondent needed to make a selection before the survey would advance to the next screen for the next question. In the IVR phone survey, these same questions were used in the same order. After a response was made on the phone keypad, the next question would advance. Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 38 Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 39 Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 40 Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 41 Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 42 Village of Scarsdale Parking Meter Pilot Test Report 43