New Smart Parking Meters Coming To Downtown Royal Oak

ROYAL OAK, MI — The City of Royal Oak said Thursday it is installing a new smart parking meter system in downtown this fall to enhance parking for residents and guests.

The city partnered with Municipal Parking Services to install new Sentry Smart Meters, which will make it easier for people to pay and park. The meters will allow people to pay from their smartphones using the Sentry Mobile consumer smartphone app, which is available on both Android and IOS devices.

The new meters will be installed in phases, with the full system activated by mid-November.

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"We want to make parking in Downtown Royal Oak easier and as efficient as possible for everyone
visiting our many restaurants, shops, cafes, salons and entertainment venues," Royal Oak police chief Corrigan O’Donohue said. "The Sentry Smart Meters are an enhancement to the current
technology we have in place."

Additionally, vice president of sales and business development at Municipal Parking Services, Rob Matthews said "the meters and kiosks provide more control to the consumer, allowing them to pick how and when to pay, and the mobile app helps identify the most convenient spot."

Street parking will have a two-hour time limit and surface lots will have a four-hour limit for each space. All current parking fees, regulations and rules will remain the same with the meters in place.

The Royal Oak Police department will review all parking violations the meters cite before issuing a ticket to the driver.

All parking violations will be mailed rather than left on windshields.