It’s been almost two months since the new parking meters were installed in Missoula. While some people are satisfied with new features, such as being able to use debit or credit cards, others commented that the Luke meters are more complicated.
“The roll out of the Luke system has not been completed yet, we’re still removing the old mechanical, coin operated meters. But we are live through most of downtown, and the public’s reaction has been understandably mixed,” Geoff Badenoch, Missoula Parking Services interim director.
Badenoch suggests taking a cell phone photo of your license plate number to have on hand when prompted to put the data into the meter. This allows someone to move to other parking spaces downtown without paying multiple times. A meeting this coming week will address concerns that the meters are not accessible to people living with disabilities.
“One of the things that we are obligated and want to do is make an accommodation for everyone, we want our facilities to be used by everyone, so everyone is welcome downtown, we just have to figure out how to do it best,” Badenoch said.
Parking services are currently exploring the possibility of a pay by phone feature, where users will not have to approach the meters at all.
