Lawrence city commissioners made the right call to eliminate drop boxes for utility payments.

The city had accepted utility payments at five drop boxes in grocery stores around the city. City commissioners voted 4-1 on Tuesday to stop offering the drop boxes. Commissioner Mike Amyx cast the lone dissenting vote.

The city said about 600 residents per month were using the drop boxes. That represents about 1.88 percent of the city’s 32,000 utility customers.

City staff sought an end to the drop boxes amid several concerns, including that the boxes are not locked, payments can take up to six days to process, and that receipts or time stamps are not provided. The city only picks up drop box payments twice per week, and city staff said processing delays sometimes have resulted in late fees and water shut-offs, which require a $50 reconnection fee, for drop-box customers.

Utility Billing Manager Kristen Webb said it would cost the city more staff time and money to collect payments from the grocery store drop boxes more frequently. Besides, she said there has been a dramatic drop-off in the number of drop-box payments since the city stopped charging fees for online and phone payments.

Amyx opposed the move, saying he was reluctant to take away a payment method that is convenient for many customers. Similarly, residents at Tuesday’s meeting expressed concern that those using the drop boxes may be very low-income people who don’t have cars, internet or checking accounts.

“There really are people who that extra $6 per year in stamps could be used for something else,” said Melinda Henderson. “Those people are invisible to a lot of people, and I just want to make sure we’re not overlooking them by going ahead and changing this without concrete information.”

But what Henderson overlooks is the potential late charges and other fees that drop-box customers face. One such incident could cost significantly more than $6.

Besides, the city will keep a secure drop box at City Hall that residents can use to drop off payments. The box at City Hall is checked daily, eliminating concerns about when checks are processed.

Habits are hard to break and no doubt there are those who would prefer that the city keep the grocery store drop boxes. But with the increasing options the city now offers residents for paying their utility bills, the boxes are increasingly irrelevant. The city made the right decision to get rid of them.