You can now easily pay parking fees in Austin, Texas, using Google Pay on your smartphone. On Wednesday, software firm Passport announced its new partnership with the giant search engine company which would allow users to pay their parking fees directly through the Google Maps app.
Long before the Passport entered into a partnership with Google, which allowed it to make use of the features that Google Maps and Google Pay offer, it bought ParkX, a local parking app startup, and made some enhancements to the software, way back in 2016. After a couple of years, Passport introduced a back-end system to the city of Austin in Texas to manage the parking meters in the city.
In 2019, the company completed the enhancements on the ParkX app and rebranded it to ParkATX. Its integration with Google Maps eliminated the need for users to download a new app that will process parking payments. Since all Android-powered devices come pre-installed with Google Maps, and most iOS users also use Google Maps, those who wish to pay parking fees online can do so using the integrated Google Pay service.
This does not mean, however, that the payment process is shorter compared to the local ParkATX app. While using Google Maps and Google Pay offers comfort and convenience, you still need to perform a series of tasks on the app.
For instance you wanted to park in a certain location in Austin. As you approach your destination, the Google Maps navigation window shows an alert offering you an option to pay parking fees using Google Pay. If you opt to use the online parking payment option, you need to enter a zone number, similar to what other parking apps require.
You are then required to select the type of vehicle you wish to park, or you can add such vehicle with its corresponding plate number. All of these appear within the Google Maps app and then the payment is handled by a remittance process through Google Pay.
Industry experts agree that using Google Maps and Google Pay in paying parking fees offers users a greater degree of convenience. However, they note that if you already have the habit of parking your vehicle within Austin, the chances are that you already use a local pay-to-park app, like ParkATX, that you downloaded and installed on your phone. Pay to park using Google Maps is now available in Austin, Texas, and according to Passport and will be fully accessible in the coming weeks.
