Salt Lake City is becoming a hotbed for mobile payments. Next month (maybe), the city will be a pilot city for Isis, the mobile payment joint venture between AT&T Mobility, Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile USA. And today, along with Aparc Systems, Salt Lake City announced a new partnership with QuickPay Corp to enable a mobile payment option for drivers in downtown Salt Lake.

Aparc Systems is implementing the mobile payment option as part of a comprehensive infrastructure upgrade the company conducted on parking meters and facilities in Salt Lake City. By adding QuickPay's mobile payment platform, Apark will give customers access to more innovative programs such as parking loyalty plans, coupons, dynamic pricing based on time or date, and automated validations from local businesses.

To date, Salt Lake City has replaced more than 2,100 single-space, coin-operated meters with devices that use Aparc Systems enforcement and management software, multi-space pay stations, and the QP QuickPay mobile payment platform, the companies said.

The new parking options will make it faster and easier for drivers to find and pay for parking, the partners said. Additionally, they said it will improve enforcement and provide greatly enhanced parking data and reporting to city officials.

"Mobile parking payments bring a new level of convenience and ease of use —  especially over the old coin-operated meters — and will streamline the parking and payment process for downtown parkers," said Robin Hutcheson, transportation director for the Salt Lake City Corp. "QuickPay is well-aligned with our citywide initiative around mobile commerce. We're excited to take advantage of the advanced features the QP QuickPay platform offers."

Using the new system, commuters can still pay using coins or credit cards, or they can use their smartphones to access QuickPay's free mobile app. The app lets parkers tap or scan the QP QuickPay sign to pay. It also lets them receive expiration notifications and add time remotely.

"The ability to easily find and pay for parking overcomes one of the most frustrating aspects of driving in any major city," said Barney Pell, chairman and CEO, QuickPay. "The forward-looking government of Salt Lake City is demonstrating its commitment to merchants and residents alike by implementing innovative new parking services, including mobile payments with QP QuickPay."

For more stories like this, visit the mobile/digital wallet research center.