Park that idea somewhere else

Posted on by Chantal Saunders

I’m sorry, did I read it right? “Parking meters should be updated to enable motorists to pay by debit or credit card” [“A House Divided,” Aug. 6]. Is Fred Burchett working for Visa? He must not know that each single transaction, regardless of amount, costs anywhere from 15 to 25 cents, plus there’s an additional 3- to 5-percent fee on the amount charged. And what of the administrative costs of dealing with thousands of credit-card numbers, paperwork and payment errors?

So Fred suggests we should buy new equipment again (our meters were recently replaced!), and then pay banks a percentage of our parking fee on a regular basis? Who on earth needs to use a credit card for 75 cents?

In truth, downtown street-parking fees should not be increased, they should be decreased to free with a strict 3-hour time limit. This would change the income source from pennies to dollars with a boot and hefty fines when a car is left in one place too long. If we want a better downtown, then let’s make sure there are no barriers keeping people out.

— Chantal Saunders
Asheville

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One thought on “Park that idea somewhere else”

  1. travelah

    The knucklehead doesn’t care. The suggestion was to make it so expensive to park downtown that over half the spots remain empty. What a complete idiot.

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