Students no longer need to worry about digging up loose change from their pockets for vending machines.

Some on-campus vending machines have become a little more convenient by accepting credit cards.

Some Coca-Cola vending machines around campus have installed e-Port systems that accept MasterCard PayPass contactless payments and magnetic stripe credit card payments.

Machines with the e-Port system are in various locations including the Bovee University Center, Java City, Anspach Hall and the Student Activity Center.

Leigh Bartholomew, manager of auxiliary operations, said the new credit card systems have been on campus since the beginning of the semester. They are in Coca-Cola machines located in high-traffic areas around campus, she said.

“Central didn’t have to pay any money for the systems. Coca-Cola paid for them to be installed on campus as a trial run to experiment with the results,” Bartholomew said.

Michael LeMay, supervisor of electricians and maintenance mechanics in the UC, said the addition of the credit card machines makes things more convenient.

“Simplifying any mechanism to reduce payment methods will bring more advantages than disadvantages,” LeMay said.

Maintenance becomes much simpler, and the upkeep decreases because no physical cash or coins have to be counted,

LeMay said. Profitability may also increase with the convenience of using cards, he said.

The SAC holds numerous events like student organization meetings, the Red Hacker tournaments and family birthday parties. With holding these events and the population we serve, providing vending machines with a variety of choices has been successful, said Assistant Director of Fitness and Wellness Jennifer Spiegel.

“I feel, as a fitness educator and firm believer in wellness, that options are there in all avenues that we face, and it’s ultimately our job to provide the needs of our consumers,”

Spiegel said.

Many people make their way in and out of campus buildings like the SAC, and the new credit card accepting machines

provide an easier and quicker option, she said.

But some think disadvantages may arise with the new convenience of the technological

machines.

Portage senior Robert Barrett said the e-Port system was sometimes sloppy and confusing when reading the credit cards. It makes bottled soft drinks more accessible, which might not be a good thing, he said.

“Maybe it promotes already fund-lacking college students to add a couple more dollars to their credit debt by purchasing overpriced beverages,” Barrett said.

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E-mail the author: Chelsea White