By Jorge Casuso

August 12, 2013 – The City Council is expected to greenlight nearly $5 million Tuesday to upgrade the equipment that collects money at major Santa Monica parking facilities.

The outdated equipment is costing the City some $80,000 a month in lost revenue and causing delays at exits due to “frequent failure,” City officials said. The equipment’s average lifespan is seven years.

“The current PARCS in the City’s gated parking facilities has outlived its lifespan and experiences frequent operating difficulties,” said Frank Ching, the City’s parking administrator. “It needs replacement and infrastructure upgrades.”

The old equipment, which was installed at 12 gated facilities in 2000, includes 37 pay–on-foot machines to fully automate the parking system, officials said.

Under the proposed contract, the City would buy and install new parking equipment at 14 parking facilities for an amount not to exceed $3.4 million from the Nevada-based WPS USA Corporation, according to City staff.

The contractor also would provide ongoing maintenance service for seven years with an option to extend for three more years at an estimated cost of $200,000 a year.

The failing equipment is not only causing Santa Monica to lose much-needed-revenue, City officials said, it is frustrating motorists and causing congestion and pollution.

“In situations when equipment fails, the parking operator needs to deploy additional staff to manually facilitate the exit process, which results in increased labor costs,” Ching said. “Customers also experience longer wait times during busy egress periods.”

The new PARCS equipment would not only reduce delays by being more reliable, it would offer additional functions and reporting capabilities.

“The replacement PARCS equipment would enhance the overall parking experience,” Ching said.

The new equipment would replace the outdated equipment in all the Downtown parking structures, including Parking Structure 6, which is currently under construction; the Main Library parking structure and the Civic Center parking facilities, officials said.

It also will be installed at the Ken Edwards Center and the Pier Deck parking lot, officials said.

With the additional facilities, the new system is anticipated to handle more than 11 million transactions annually, up from the current 9 million, according to staff.

The contract to be awarded to WPS USA Corporation is for an amount not to exceed $5.4 million, staff said.

“No maintenance or service costs are anticipated during the first year,” Ching said.