Electronic Payment Stations Coming to Some Borough Trails

PALMER — Users of the Matanuska Borough’s three most popular trailheads will soon have another option for paying parking fees: electronic pay stations.

West Butte, Jim Creek and the Government Peak Recreation Area parking lot next to the chalet will be the first three parks to host the kiosks, which are set to go in this spring, said Hugh Leslie, who heads the Borough’s recreation and library division. A fourth could be installed at Crevasse Moraine next year, he said.

The Borough charges a daily $5 parking fee at about 10 trailheads, he said. An annual $40 pass can also be purchased online or by mail.

The kiosks, which connect with a secure payment service via a telephone line or cell signal, will accept credit and debit cards as well as cash, he said. The brown boxes, known as “iron rangers,” will also remain at the parking lots in case users want to pay by check.

“Very few people are carrying cash anymore and nobody has their check book when they are going to climb up the Butte,” he said. “Here’s the good side: we’re going to make it really easy for folks who want to pay.”

The kiosks will cost the Borough between $30,000 and $36,000, Leslie said.

Borough officials estimate between 30 and 40 percent of trail head users currently pay the required parking fees. But that number is anticipated to skyrocket with the roll-out of the kiosks, he said. They expect about 40 percent more in revenue in the year following the installations.

Between that increased revenue and manpower hours saved when Borough workers no longer must collect and process cash payments, Leslie expects the stations to pay for themselves within four years.

Revenue from the parking area helps pay for trail and restroom maintenance, Leslie said, including 10 seasonal trail workers.

“Certainly some people don’t want to pay – and we understand that – but I’m really proud of our trail crew and the effort we’re putting in and benefits we’re seeing,” Leslie said.