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How do we pay for parking?

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Re: How do we pay for parking?

#71

Post by KRAKRISMOTT »

kortilla wrote: post #31
thechao wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have, on multiple occasions (in Austin, >10 years ago), paid for parking to an "attendant" at a lot I know is free. Those guys will just have your car towed — the whole scam just hangs together: the towing company charges you for the storage & processing, but not the nominal fee; the attendant gets cash. Win-win-lose.

How can they have it towed if it’s free. That’s just theft.

A lot of the blue collar professions are in cahoots with organized crime (and similarly many adjacent white collar industries like real estate)

In New York it has gotten so bad that even first responders have been subverted

https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/gang-members-and-others...

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#72

Post by d136o »

Some people say that the common folk now have cheap mass produced gadgets that were previously only available to the wealthy, and some rant about the enshitification (great term whose origin I need to learn more about of) of our society.

I nod along to this piece and yet I don’t want to be so cynical.

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#73

Post by NeoTar »

jeremy_wiebe wrote: post #24

My personal pet peeve is lots that show you the apps you can pay for parking with, but then make it extremely difficult to find the lot ID. Pay-for parking feels like the kind of thing that should become a utility with one, easy, well-known way to pay for parking anywhere.

> Pay-for parking feels like the kind of thing that should become a utility with one, easy, well-known way to pay for parking anywhere.

The trouble is that this either requires government regulation, or for one company to effectively become a monopoly, which can lead to different abuses.

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#74

Post by paganel »

rcpt wrote: post #11
akira2501 wrote: post #4

Digital feudalism at it's finest. "You wish to park on Lord Absentee's land? You must enroll yourself in his service, then, peasant!"

Free parking is theft

Free walking on public sidewalks is also theft, following the same logic. Or sitting in place for a little too long.

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#76

Post by bluepnume »

We built a startup.

You scan a QR code, that sends a text message. If you have a saved card, you pay in the text thread by replying 'pay now', if not you get a link to save a new card.

No apps required. Hoping that with enough adoption, it will obviate the need for experiences as bad as this.

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#79

Post by xg15 »

thechao wrote: post #23
burcs wrote: post #5

Modern parking lots always seem ripe for physical phishing, whats stopping someone from sticking up a couple of QR codes that link to a fraudulent payment page or some other malware? This is one of those things that tech really didn't "fix" and now I have to select from one of 20 apps instead of just paying with cash or even a credit card.

I have, on multiple occasions (in Austin, >10 years ago), paid for parking to an "attendant" at a lot I know is free. Those guys will just have your car towed — the whole scam just hangs together: the towing company charges you for the storage & processing, but not the nominal fee; the attendant gets cash. Win-win-lose.

That goes beyond fraud though. That sounds more like a protection racket.

Re: How do we pay for parking?

#80

Post by slashdev »

LandR wrote: post #41
thechao wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have, on multiple occasions (in Austin, >10 years ago), paid for parking to an "attendant" at a lot I know is free. Those guys will just have your car towed — the whole scam just hangs together: the towing company charges you for the storage & processing, but not the nominal fee; the attendant gets cash. Win-win-lose.

In my city, in the rougher parts it used to be somewhat normal to pay someone to "look after your car", of course you were paying them not to vandalise it while you were away! Especially popular on football days when parking near the stadium. It was only a couple of pounds or so. I haven't been to these parts of town for years so I have no idea if this practice still goes on.

This is common all over the developing world. I always give them a little something, despite the feel of extortion it has to it. It’s marginally better than begging, and they will really watch the car, and often help with parking and leaving. Fair enough.
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