Het Parool reports that one of Amsterdam's local political parties (Mobiel Mokum) suggests the introduction of e-money payments for parking. The political party refers to examples in Nijmegen and Rotterdam and proposes the introduction of separate pre-paid cards for parking. As for the financial element: Mobiel Mokum believes that cost of terminal management may go down and also that some money can be made by sponsorship logo's on the face of the card.
I am not sure if I understand the proposal correctly. Cities are already in a position to buy pre-paid chipcards from Interpay and sell these to the public. So I assume the proposal is to make cash payments impossible. Yet, city regulations make it hard to impose a single payment system throughout the city. So there may be some more discussion and negotiations ahead before this suggestion becomes reality.
