Parking will become more convenient
I refer to the letter 'Short changed on car park' (South China Morning Post, January 26) concerning your reader's need to acquire $2 coins to feed the parking meters at the Pak Sha Wan Centre in Sai Kung.
The purpose of designating metered parking spaces is to maximise the use of on-street spaces and to discourage long-term parking.
The Transport Department is aware that old mechanical parking meters (MPMs) are undesirable as they require motorists to feed them with coins which may sometimes be difficult to obtain. Therefore, the Transport Department and the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department have launched a programme since April last year to replace all MPMs in phases with the smartcard-operated electronic parking devices (EPDs).
At the end of January, about 50 per cent of the MPMs had been replaced with EPDs. According to our tentative schedule, the MPMs in Sai Kung, together with the ones in Tai Po and Sha Tin, will be replaced with EPDs later this year. By then, motorists can use e-Park cards, available at about 500 sales outlets, to purchase parking time from EPDs throughout Hong Kong without the need to rummage for coins.
In the meantime, the Transport Department and the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department are looking into the feasibility of opening up the electronic parking system to accept electronic purse cards like Mondex and Visa Cash for providing more convenience to motorists.
HONSON YUEN for Commissioner for Transport
