Assists in reducing contact for park visitors.
Delaware State Parks is partnering with Flowbird’s distribution partner, Butts Ticket & Solutions, to bring in 20 additional Flowbird multi-use kiosks after a successful first season to streamline state park admission sales. The kiosks, Flowbird’s Strada pay stations, are being used to create a seamless park entrance process, and allow customers the means to pay with credit card.
Delaware’s Division of Parks and Recreation oversees 17 scenic outdoor parks spanning across 200,000 acres, known as the Delaware State Parks. The vast land and nature preserves offer 5 different campground sites, along with recreational opportunities such as hiking, camping, swimming, fishing, and nature tours. Prior to the initial implementation of Strada pay stations, visitors purchased their entrance passes on-site at a park office, or from a designated state park retailer. When fee attendants are not on duty, visitors deposited their fees in self-registration envelopes provided at park entrances and placed them in designated secure drop boxes.
With a steady increase in popularity and visitation, the State Parks team began to see a need for updated park pass transaction methods for the busy seasons, and when park attendants are away. A trial took place in 2018 in which two Flowbird Strada pay stations were placed at the entrance of Alapocas Run and Holts Landing State Parks. During the span of 6 months, visitors were encouraged to use the pay stations to purchase their daily entrance passes.
The Strada pay stations allow visitors to conveniently pay with a credit or debit card, functioning in pay-and display mode for visitors to show receipts on their dashboard. Whereas the old method required cash to be placed in an envelope when park attendants were away, visitors are easily walked through a credit card transaction with the Strada’s 7” full-color display. The pay station software is programmed to allow guests to choose between in-state and out-of-state park rates as well as purchase admission tickets to the Fort Miles museum at Cape Henlopen State Park. The pay stations communicate wirelessly and run on solar power, adhering to the Division’s commitment to sustainability and environmental health.
All payment data is securely sent in real-time to Flowbird’s intelligent data management suite, giving parks staff the ability to track how many vehicles are visiting each park throughout the day. This data can be valuable to help determine parking staffing plans.
The functionality of the solution during the trial was a success, leading to an installation of 18 more pay stations in 2019. The units were placed in traditional park settings, including beach accesses and boat launches. Several of those locations, deemed as remote or off-the-grid, saw equal success with the pay stations and obtained full communication without issues. In early 2020, a second order was made for an additional 20 pay stations to be installed throughout the parks.
“Everyone at Delaware State Parks has been a pleasure to work with,” said Mitchell Butts, Butts Tickets & Solutions Representative, “As we move into the third and final phase of this 3-year-project, we at Butts Ticket & Solutions are excited to be able to introduce a user-friendly, state-of-the-art, contactless mode of payment for all parks across the state of Delaware.”
In 2019, over 23,000 transactions were performed at Delaware State Parks Flowbird pay stations. The additional 20 pay station are planned to be installed in May 2020 for the start of Delaware’s beach season.
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About Butts Ticket & Solutions:
BTS is a family owned, third generation, printing and distribution company that has serviced the parking and transportation industry since 1965. Since 2014, BTS has been able to expand on their usual portfolio of printed products to offer their customers the full line of Flowbird solutions including both CWT and Strada pay stations, the Flowbird mobile payment app, and full maintenance programs.