Parking Meter Poems by pixabay.com

A Literate Ticket

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Next time you pay for parking, your ticket may come with a brand new poem…

As a UNESCO City of Literature, Dunedin celebrates local writing in many original ways. One popular programme is the Parking Meter Poems initiative, which sees local poems printed on the back of parking receipts from Pay and Display machines across the city. Showcasing wonderful poetry by local writers, the initiative is coveted by other cities around the world.

The original idea grew from a concept created by University of Otago design students Benjamin Alder and Liam Bigelow. Their Poetick machines particularly impressed Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, when she visited Dunedin in 2015.

For the third time since the initiative began, more rolls are due to be printed and the list of poets and poetry keeps growing. With the COVID-19 restrictions that the city faced over recent months, and parking for residents being free at that time, new poems for 2020 are only now being selected ready for print.

Since information is already printed on the back of the tickets, there is no additional printing cost to add the poems. Some Dunedinites have reported that they’re looking to collect a complete set.

The City of Literature team is really grateful to Reece Smith, Ian Heal and the whole Parking Operations team for their support, as more and more poems by local poets, including poems by emerging poets and competition winners, are added into the mix. It’s great to collaborate on this special project which connects our writers with the wider community.

Hayley Rata Heyes said ”I love the poetry on parking tickets project - it would be a delight for me to see my poem out in the world in such a unique way! I'm very happy to give my permission for it to be used”. Other Dunedin poets showcased are David Eggleton, Lynley Edmeades, Ian Loughran, Jilly O’Brien, Marvin Hubbard, Peter Olds, Ruth Arnison, Carolyn McCurdie, James Dignan, Jonathan Cweorth, Elizabeth Pulford, Annie Villiers, Emma Neale, Elena Poletti, Kirstie McKinnon, Claire Arthur and David Howard. Check out the wonderful poetry books that include these poets at your local library.