Parking meter system impractical and outdated

The street-side parking meter system was discussed again yesterday at the Central District Community Advisory Board meeting.

Board member António Monteiro raised the matter again, following his own involvement with a wider group that expressed dissatisfaction with the government’s decision to remove coin payments from parking meters last year.

Besides the previously-reported conflict between laws 5/2023 and 10/2023 – with the former providing that legal tender, whether in bills or coins, cannot be refused as a payment method in Macau, while the latter exclusively mandates methods of electronic payment for parking meters – Monteiro also noted other problems with the meter system that he considers impractical and outdated.

He noted that while local laws allow tourists to rent and operate vehicles in Macau, they do not adequately alert drivers of the need to possess either a Macau Pass or a specific bank card, so as to pay electronically for parking meters. This not only creates logistical concerns but also damages Macau’s image as a tourist-friendly destination, said Monteiro.

Additionally, the system does not offer users the option of displaying the parking meters’ on-screen text in English, compounding the system’s difficulty for those who cannot read Chinese or Portuguese.

Moreover, the system is complex and far from user-friendly, requiring users to undertake many steps before completing their payment.

Monteiro said that in addition to forcing people to use an electronic method of payment, the system is limited. Whilst it accepts “tap cards” like a Macau Pass, it does not accept other, more common means of electronic payment, such as mPay, Alipay, WeChat pay, Visa or Mastercard.

The same member also noted parking meter users cannot extend their payment time, if needed, or pay remotely. All these facts lead to his conclusion that the current system is both obsolete and even more impractical than the former system, which accepted coins.

He urged the government to develop a new system more suited to Macau’s image as a digital yet tourist-friendly and leisure-oriented city.

Recently, the Times observed an event in which a male driver, whose car was registered to the Hong Kong region, was forced to call for help from a nearby shop’s security staff to successfully operate the parking meter.

The incident occurred during the New Year’s Eve holiday, in the surroundings of Avenida de Dom João IV. The driver said he could not understand the information displayed on the parking meter to pay for his parking.