New Haven Independent

The occasion? The anniversary of the installation of the city’s 2,500 new digital parking meters, and a summer push to better publicize the service. The city introduced the cards in effort to make parking more convenient, streamline the meter-collection process, and promote downtown business.

Edith W. Kufta (pictured above) handed out free $5 cards to downtown parkers Tuesday, teaching them how to fill up, operate and buy coffee with the cards.

The card is accepted at 25-30 local vendors, including coffee shops and downtown marts, according to Mark Connolly, vice president of operations for Parcxmart Technologies, Inc. His group was hired by the city to install new parking meters and produce and market the cards. Within the next year, he hopes to expand the program to have 100 stores accept and sell the card. The program has been so popular, Bridgeport will soon install a similar one.

Meanwhile, Connolly, Kufta and a team of Downtown Ambassadors will be hitting the New Haven streets, passing out 500 free cards as a summer promotion. Parcxmart takes a 10 percent commission of all meter revenue generated by the card, and pays vendors $1 per each new card they sell to customers.

The cards, which can be bought in pre-paid amounts of $10 to $100, are the highest-selling product at downtown info booths, said Town Green Services Director Scott Healy, heralding the product as a booster for downtown shops.

The cards are catching on, said Mike Piscitelli (pictured), acting director of the city Traffic and Parking Department: “We’re seeing a 30 percent to 40 percent usage of the New Haven Parcxmart Card in meters that are located close to those stores and restaurants that offer Parcxmart cards.” As the card is incorporated into (but not replaced by) the new municipal ID, he hopes to increase that number even more.