The director of the company "Parking servis" Nusret Canović said that the billing system via SMS proved to be good, but that citizens rarely use other ways to regulate parking on the street.
"SMS proved to be by far the best and easiest payment system, 99 percent of citizens in the zones regulate parking in this way. But, of course, no one needs to have a phone. "Parking can be paid for by buying a ticket, which can be taken at any place where you have a 'Parking service' facility, at 16 locations in the city, 11 parking spaces, five garages," said Canović.
As he claims, the SMS system for the company is the most complicated, in terms of maintenance, manpower, payments to mobile operators and that there is no profit.
Canović said that they sell a few thousand parking tickets in a few months.
Canović pointed out that parking can also be paid through the parking meter, which has been installed at the "Budo Tomović" KIC, on Independence Square and the Clinical Center.
"However, the payment system through parking meters has not taken off, that is, citizens rarely use it. In a few months, we had only 72 euros of revenue from the parking meters. Specifically, in the parking lot at the Clinical Center, we had 76 cents for several months, that is, only two parking tickets were paid," said Canović.
Citizens, tenants, who live in parking zones can pay by purchasing a monthly ticket.
"There is a reputation that you can't find a parking space in the center, if you go out to the street, you will see that it is full, but in our parking lots, except for the one behind 'Bek', it has not yet happened that you cannot find a free parking space," he said. Canovic.
He claims that there is no city in Montenegro that has the price of parking like Podgorica, from 30 to 40 cents in the city center.
"In Budva, off-season parking at the Post Office costs 80 cents, at the Avala movie theater 2,5 euros, in Kotor and Ulcinj it is more expensive than Podgorica, in Bijelo Polje it is 50 cents," Canović said.
He pointed out that in city parking lots on the street, citizens have 15 minutes of tolerance for not paying for parking.
"You need to finish something, do business, you can park your car on the street for 15 minutes, although the legal limit is five," Canović said.
He said that they chose zoned parking because there are a large number of citizens who gravitate towards the center, and by limiting the parking time, they allow more drivers to use one space.
"We don't manage even five percent of the parking spaces in Podgorica, and if it weren't for us there would be chaos in the city. In the City quarter, we zoned several streets, and until then tenants could not park. Now order has been established, the tenants have monthly tickets and there is always a free place in that neighborhood," claims Canović.
Sensors for free parking spaces will soon be in two streets
Canović said that sensors will be installed in Zlatarska Street and Novak Milošev Street by the end of the year or early next, which will notify citizens of free parking spaces.
"It will be, so to speak, a pilot project, let's see how it works," said Canović. He pointed out that they had a positive financial performance last year.
"This year, as well as next year, we will do business positively, and we can do better. We have no debts, but this is a pure service for citizens as a communal service", said Canović.
Bonus video:
