Evanston will soon complete the installation of nearly 1,700 new parking meters across the city, officials say.

The city has already installed 1,585 of the new meters and expects to install the rest by the end of May, city officials said.

“We’re excited about our new parking meters,” parking facilities supervisor Michael Rivera said in an informational video released by the city. “We feel that it will bring in tons of high-tech functionality into a traditional single space parking meter. It’s going to give us years of dependability and user convenience.”

Each of the new parking meters has a “rechargeable battery with solar power assistance,” which will allow Evanston residents and visitors to pay in new ways. The new meters will still accept dollars and coins such as nickels, dimes and quarters but will now also accept credit cards, including MasterCard and Visa.

Customers can also pay with a combination of coins or dollars and a credit card, although the physical money must be inserted before the credit card. The meters have been encrypted to protect credit card information and do not store customers’ credit card information, Rivera said.

The screens of these parking meters will display operation days and enforcement times. If the card is accepted, the machines will prompt the customer to select the amount of time he or she wishes to park. However, if a card is declined, the screen will say so.

The new meters “will have increased functionality and user convenience,” Rivera said.

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