Miner announces launch of Whoosh mobile-parking system

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Drivers parking in downtown Syracuse have a new option for making a payment at a parking meter.

Whoosh, a mobile-phone application, went live on Monday, allowing individuals to pay for parking directly from their devices.

Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner made the announcement Tuesday afternoon while speaking to reporters along the 300 block of South Franklin Street in Armory Square.

The app, which is in use in more than 30 sites in the United Kingdom and France, is making its U.S. debut in the city of Syracuse, the mayor’s office said in a news release.

Residents can “download an app on their phone and pay for parking on their phone,” Miner said in her remarks in the sidewalk news conference.

“You don’t have to go through the rain or go through snow banks to put your credit card or coins or dollars into the parking meter,” said Miner.

Several parking-meter stations in Armory Square now include a pink-colored sign with information about Whoosh, indicating a driver can use the app at that parking meter.

The city of Syracuse is initially deploying the Whoosh system in the Armory Square area, but plans to expand it throughout downtown Syracuse and into the University Hill area, Miner’s office said.

“We will be extending this to all of the meters in the city eventually, but this is where we’re starting out [Armory Square] with our highest demand areas of downtown and some places on the East side,” Miner said.

Whoosh is a download available on iOS or Android devices. Users download the app, register their vehicle’s license plates, and a credit card to which they will charge their parking payment, Miner said.

Whoosh charges a convenience fee of 35 cents to each transaction.

To pay for parking, users can open the app on their phone, choose their vehicle, and enter an amount of time they estimate they will need for parking.

If time is running short, Whoosh sends a notification to users’ phones, alerting them that their paid parking time is about to expire with an option to extend the parking time, if desired, according to Miner’s office.

The system does not change the maximum amount of time that a driver can remain parked at a given meter. The meters have a two-hour maximum, Miner said.

A group of representatives from Whoosh, who will dress in bright pink shirts, will visit Armory Square in the next seven to 10 days to provide tutorials and information on the system, Miner said.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com