This Whole Parking Thing
Like most people, I've heard rumors that it's illegal to put change into someone else parking meter. Out of curiosity, I did a little bit of digging, and while I didn't come up with a definitive answer for my own city, I found this thread on Yahoo! Answers. Seems like most of the people who commented on there harbor the same question as I do: how could putting change into someone else's meter possibly be illegal?
Even if it is illegal in some places, whether or not the stories about homeless people being paid to feed meters for people while they are at work are true, the parking meter is a relic now. They're not around because they're the best way to raise money from cars parked there; it's because it makes the owners of those cars more prone to making mistakes.
I don't have to elaborate on this point. In every city that I've ever visited, it's obvious that the people running city hall are interested in extracting the most money they can from people. Parking meters or spots with a 90-minute limit on them, that requires more money or moving your car when the time is up, are specifically designed to maximize breakage.
Would it be possible to have a driver swipe their credit card when they arrive at a spot, swipe it again when they leave, and charge them for the time difference? Sure it would...that's how it works at Detroit Metro Airport for long-term lots. Meters might be a little trickier, because you have to make sure people don't pull away from a spot without swiping their card on exit or else the next person could ride their coattails...but the technology to make this kind of thing happen exists, and it's feasible to implement.
The private sector of parking garages and lots has embraced ease of use and convenience. Municipalities, on the other hand, have not, since that would require investment in new infrastructure that would, ultimately, reduce almost any city's revenue from parking violations. And no city is that dumb.
What this ignores is the human element of each individual driver. People can take a lot of pressure, but getting a parking ticket seems to make most people lose their cool extremely quickly. I think people feel it's a blunt reminder of just how much control we lack over our lives in modern society, and while most people ignore that most of the time, a parking ticket is the perfect straw to break the camel's back.
I'd like to think there would be benefits (not necessarily financial ones) in implementing a system that costs a little more, but keeps people in control. It makes it easy to update the time on the meter, or better yet, makes the updating completely unnecessary. I don't think it's a stretch to say it would have a positive impact on peoples' psyches. But, alas, the system is broken, and on purpose, and we're stuck with it for the long-haul, until someone figures out a new system with incentives that work for everyone.
Maybe it's one of those things that will help nudge some people towards the expansion of public transportation.
P.S. I thought of an idea for a mobile app which I called "Meter Beater" which would act as an egg timer for people parked in metered spots. Turns out that exact thing exists for iPhones.
Even if it is illegal in some places, whether or not the stories about homeless people being paid to feed meters for people while they are at work are true, the parking meter is a relic now. They're not around because they're the best way to raise money from cars parked there; it's because it makes the owners of those cars more prone to making mistakes.
I don't have to elaborate on this point. In every city that I've ever visited, it's obvious that the people running city hall are interested in extracting the most money they can from people. Parking meters or spots with a 90-minute limit on them, that requires more money or moving your car when the time is up, are specifically designed to maximize breakage.
Would it be possible to have a driver swipe their credit card when they arrive at a spot, swipe it again when they leave, and charge them for the time difference? Sure it would...that's how it works at Detroit Metro Airport for long-term lots. Meters might be a little trickier, because you have to make sure people don't pull away from a spot without swiping their card on exit or else the next person could ride their coattails...but the technology to make this kind of thing happen exists, and it's feasible to implement.
The private sector of parking garages and lots has embraced ease of use and convenience. Municipalities, on the other hand, have not, since that would require investment in new infrastructure that would, ultimately, reduce almost any city's revenue from parking violations. And no city is that dumb.
What this ignores is the human element of each individual driver. People can take a lot of pressure, but getting a parking ticket seems to make most people lose their cool extremely quickly. I think people feel it's a blunt reminder of just how much control we lack over our lives in modern society, and while most people ignore that most of the time, a parking ticket is the perfect straw to break the camel's back.
I'd like to think there would be benefits (not necessarily financial ones) in implementing a system that costs a little more, but keeps people in control. It makes it easy to update the time on the meter, or better yet, makes the updating completely unnecessary. I don't think it's a stretch to say it would have a positive impact on peoples' psyches. But, alas, the system is broken, and on purpose, and we're stuck with it for the long-haul, until someone figures out a new system with incentives that work for everyone.
Maybe it's one of those things that will help nudge some people towards the expansion of public transportation.
P.S. I thought of an idea for a mobile app which I called "Meter Beater" which would act as an egg timer for people parked in metered spots. Turns out that exact thing exists for iPhones.