Non-residents can now reserve beach parking at Good Harbor, Wingaersheek, and Stage Fort Park on the Blinkay website or mobile app
Today, the City of Gloucester officially launched the new non-resident beach parking reservation system – Blinkay. Non-residents can now reserve beach parking for Good Harbor Beach, Wingaersheek Beach, and Stage Fort Park through the Blinkay website or mobile app. After a successful first season requiring parking reservations in 2022, the City will build upon this success with an improved platform utilizing fixed license plate reader cameras to validate passes.
The Blinkay mobile app can be downloaded for free in the App Store or Google Play Store. Non-residents will be required to create an account prior to selecting the vehicle type and the desired date. After entering the vehicle’s license plate information, non-residents will pay with a credit or debit card to secure their reservation.
Reservations are required starting May 27th, 2023 and can be made up to 10 days in advance. Reservations are non-refundable; however, Blinkay’s platform allows users to add or change their passes between vehicles to provide more flexibility to visitors.
The fixed license plate reader cameras will streamline the check-in process. Reservations will be associated with a specific license plate number – the plate reader cameras will notify parking lot attendants if a vehicle has a valid reservation or a resident beach sticker.
“The reservation system was an overwhelming success last year,” said Mayor Greg Verga. “We have been able to dramatically decrease traffic, reduce overcrowding and eliminate the stress of driving to Gloucester only to be turned away at the gate. Implementing efficient systems can have a positive impact on so many pieces of City government, and I am proud of how successful this new system has been. I am looking forward to the coming beach season.”
The plate reader cameras will also provide real-time beach operations information, providing parking lot capacity counts to manage parking availability.
There are no significant changes to the resident beach sticker process, and no reservations will be required for residents. The license plate reader cameras will verify the vehicle’s resident beach sticker and the plate number will no longer be on the sticker itself.
To learn more about the resident beach sticker application or Blinkay non-resident parking reservation system, visit the City’s website: https://gloucester-ma.gov/299/Beach-Information.
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