SFMTA seeks $70.6M meter contract citing 3G sunset and hardware age

SFMTA presented a competitive procurement to replace the city’s parking‑meter network and to move toward pay‑by‑license‑plate enforcement at a July 23 committee meeting.

Parking director Ted Graff said the agency selected McKay Meters through a competitive process to supply roughly 12,100 single‑space meters and 2,365 multi‑space pay stations. The resolution asks the Board to authorize a contract not to exceed $70,557,894: approximately $22 million in capital costs for the hardware and roughly $45 million in operating/maintenance obligations over the projected 10‑year life of the equipment (a five‑year base term with a five‑year extension available).

SFMTA said urgency derives from an industry change: many existing meters rely on 3G cellular modems and will stop functioning when carriers sunset 3G service (Verizon’s announced discontinuation creates a replacement deadline). The agency outlined a staged replacement that targets the 3G areas first and expects to replace the affected units before the carrier sunset; full citywide replacement would be staged over approximately three years. SFMTA described expected operational savings (fewer battery changes, longer device uptime) as well as additional revenue from improved uptime and contactless payments.

Supervisors asked for clarity on the capital/operating split, questioned why the operating costs (maintenance and service over contract life) are included in the authorization, and asked whether upgrading existing meters might be a lower‑cost alternative. SFMTA and procurement staff said vendors’ modem upgrades alone would not be durable, that older meters already exceed seven years of age and are near end of life, and that negotiated warranties and rechargeable‑battery technology materially reduce ongoing maintenance and labor costs. SFMTA and its budget analyst provided a fiscal explanation that the $22M capital ask was included in the state of good repair/bond package while the $45M operational estimate represents maintenance and service over the equipment’s life and will be managed in the agency’s operating budget.

Public callers urged caution and asked for more detail about recycling and disposal of retired hardware, data‑center location and cybersecurity, and whether U.S.‑based firms were considered. SFMTA committed to follow‑up information on procurement details, recycling/disposal plans, and the projected deployment schedule. The committee referred the item to the full Board as a committee report without a recommendation.