T2 Systems: ShrevePark Extends Goodwill to Patrons with New UPsafety® PE Functionality

Background

ShrevePark was established in 2020 to improve on-street parking in Shreveport, Louisiana’s Central Business District, managing approximately 750 metered spaces. The six-member team at ShrevePark oversees the enforcement, administration, and collections for the parking program, as well as all non-moving violations, citywide, issued by the Shreveport Police Department and the Shreveport Airport Authority.

Shreveport, the third largest city in Louisiana, has a population of around 190,000 and, along with its sister city Bossier City, forms a metro area with about 393,000 residents with nearly 8.5 million people visiting annually. The city is known for its vibrant history, including the famous Louisiana Hayride where Elvis Presley got his start, and is home to the Independence Bowl.

Challenge

With limited on-street parking in the busy business district, ShrevePark faced significant challenges in managing parking violations and collections. The existing payment plan system was cumbersome and inefficient, requiring manual entry of payment details into an Excel spreadsheet and monthly updates to log payments and ensure agreement requirements were being met. Patrons could only pay in person or by mail since partial payments were not accepted online.

“Some of our fines and violations carry pretty large fines, and it was our experience that if a citizen could not pay in full, they very often wouldn’t pay at all,” says Monica Rogers, Office Manager, Shreveport Parking Division. This forced staff to call patrons in arrears, often followed by repetitive and time-consuming follow-up letters if calls went unanswered. Given Shreveport’s thriving nightlife—including six casinos, music venues, dining, museums, and festivals—finding a more efficient solution was imperative.

Solution

Understanding the need for a more efficient solution, ShrevePark, an UPsafety® PE customer for almost 5 years, turned to us for help. “We jumped at the chance to be a part of the controlled deployment of their new payment plans feature,” Monica said. The new automated system allows payment plan terms to be entered directly into the system, reducing manual data entry and errors. Patrons now receive email confirmations and monthly written statements via mail, improving transparency and record-keeping.

The city’s parking division has always taken an approach of working with citizens rather than penalizing them. “The city itself is not looking to put people in the poor house over not paying a parking ticket,” Monica explained. “We feel that choosing to work with patrons helps breed goodwill – and what parking division doesn’t want to do that?”

Patrons may now enter a payment plan request through UPsafety®’s patron-facing online portal, where they can pay off their outstanding ticket in month-to-month installments, once approved and enrolled. “It’s a wonderful way to offer convenience and improve our collection rates,” Monica said.

ShrevePark implemented our UPsafety® PE payment plan functionality in the fall of 2023 before it became available to customers in January 2024.

Results

UPsafety PE Payment Plan PortalThe implementation of the new system has yielded impressive results. Since August 2023, 57 payment arrangements have been made, with 25 successfully paid and closed, bringing in $9,905 with minimal effort. Of the 31 open agreements totaling $14,855, $7,006 has already been collected. “We believe our payment plan results are a direct result of the payment plans program with UPsafety,” Monica said. Only one payment plan has been canceled for non-payment, showcasing the system’s effectiveness.

In addition to streamlining the collections process, UPsafety has freed up countless hours for the ShrevePark staff, allowing them to focus on other critical tasks. The collaboration with the UPsafety team during the controlled deployment of the program ensured that the features were tailored to ShrevePark’s needs, demonstrating the power of open-minded and willing partnerships.

“I knew that we needed an automated and efficient way to successfully administer our payment plan program. Thankfully, the UPsafety team of problem-solving professionals heard my request for help, listened to us when we described our needs, welcomed us into the controlled deployment, and worked closely with us every step of the way,” Monica said. “Our business is important to us, and T2 respects that – always responding to our needs with a sense of urgency. T2 is a value-added partner that I highly recommend.”

If you are interested in learning more about our UPsafety® Permits and Enforcement solution, contact us to discuss how we can transform your operation.

About T2 Systems 

T2 is the largest provider of parking and mobility solutions in North America. With over 27 years in business, T2 now serves more than 2,000 customers and maintains the largest Customer Community with over 7,500 active members. T2 helps universities, municipalities, operators, healthcare campuses, and transportation hubs generate revenue and operate efficiently with a comprehensive, integrated suite of solutions featuring touchless and contactless capabilities. From curbside management to gateless, from mobile payments to transportation demand management, T2 strives to make every trip a smooth journey by streamlining the parking, mobility, and transportation experience with technology solutions that help organizations manage resources, achieve goals, and empower consumers with choices.