ParkCard

I've been hearing rumors that there is a special card for the parking meters downtown. If you look at the meters, you can see a slot on the side for the card. I've haven't seen one of the cards yet, but maybe I'll take the time to get one soon.

The advantage of using the card is that you don't need quarters, dimes or nickels, and you can use the card to secure the maximum time available on the meter, but then get a refund if you don't use all the time. The downside is that the card costs $5, but if you park at meters often enough, the convenience and the money you save by refunding the unused minutes probably balances out the initial card cost.

ParkCards can be purchased and reloaded with minutes at the Waterbury Police Parking Division office, 210 Bank Street (at the corner of Grand Street), Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Their phone number is 574-6721. (A word of caution: I've heard that you buy the card at the Bank Street office, but that you have to take the card to the Police Department on East Main Street to load it, so allow some extra time for getting the card. Or wait for me to try it out and blog about it!)