Scrabble for loose change set to end soon as council plans parking machine upgrade
Parking ticket machines that only accept coins will be replaced with more modern payment options as part of an upgrade in Stafford Borough.
Most council-run pay-and display facilities in Stafford and Stone now accept cards, but motorists still have to have coins handy for four machines if they do not wish to pay by phone.
The scrabble for loose change in the car could soon be a thing of the past however, after Stafford Borough Council’s cabinet agreed to replace 10 parking ticket machines on Thursday.
A £60,000 budget is being set aside from a reserve fund to buy new machines.
A report to Thursday’s cabinet meeting said: “The council has been notified by our parking ticket machine supplier that 10 of its parking ticket machines at car park locations in Stafford and Stone will become obsolete by the end of this financial year and the back-office element will not work beyond the end of 2023.
"In the main, this is due to these older machines operating on 2G and 3G phone signals, which are being turned off nationally.
“Therefore, the machines will simply not function and will require upgrading or replacing. This will ensure that the service operates efficiently and effectively, including income collection.
“The council currently operates 22 pay-and-display machines in total; 10 were replaced during 2022/23 and two are no longer required, with the remaining 10 requiring replacement. The nine pay-on-foot machines at Riverside and Waterfront, are not impacted by the planned removal of the 3G phone provision, by mobile phone providers.
“Of the 10 machines due to be replaced, four are coin-only, with the remainder being coin-and-card. All of the replacement machines will be coin-and-card, which will increase payment options and benefit car park users.”
