City of Atlanta hires new company to enforce parking
PARKatlanta, a wildly unpopular parking enforcement company in the city, has been replaced.
The city has hired SP Plus Corporation (SP+) to take over the job and is aiming to address the complaints people had about parking enforcement under PARKatlanta’s watch. The city’s new parking program is called ATLPlus, according to the city.
“The City of Atlanta is pleased to announce the launch of a new, customer-based parking experience with ATLPlus,” Mayor Kasim Reed said in a press release. “With the addition of upgraded equipment and integration of smartphone apps, ATLPlus will minimize the time it takes for residents and visitors to safely and legally park their vehicles. In addition, customers will now have an opportunity to dispute tickets through an administrative review process. We are confident that SP Plus will bring a new level of experience and service to parking in our city.”
The company plans to upgrade the city’s 2,400 metered parking spaces.
“Immediate upgrades include the conversion to a program using license plate recognition technology for enforcement,” the press release says. “Over the coming months, SP+ plans to meet with neighborhood stakeholders to discuss the impact of the new program, enhanced customer service and operational efficiency.”
There will also be a new dispute resolution process.
“For the first time, ATLPlus will allow customers up to 14 days to contest a citation online, in person or by mail,” the press release says. “Each contested citation will be reviewed by the Department of Public Works’ Administrative Review Process. The purpose of this process will be to determine if the citation is valid or invalid. This will provide increased oversight of SP+ and rapid feedback regarding the validity of a parking citation. Administrative reviews will be conducted by specially trained staff in the Department of Public Works and within 15 business days each contested citation will be reviewed and individuals will be notified of the validity of their parking citation. Citations that are invalid will be dismissed, while citations that are upheld can be paid or further disputed at the Atlanta Municipal Courts.”
The company’s website says SP+ manages parking for cities around the country.
“Through our SP+ Parking, Standard Parking and Central Parking brands, we currently operate thousands of parking facilities containing over two million parking spaces in hundreds of cities across the United States and Canada,” the website says.