Watchdog: vandalized parking meter machines --- but why?
It's such a logical answer.
Reader Tom Wishon contacted us with a very, very good guess as to why anyone would bother scraping, gouging or otherwise obscuring the hours of operation on Fells Point parking meter machines, which issue parking meter slips for your dashboard.
These meter machines are slowly replacing traditional parking meters around the city. Usually, the hours of enforcement are posted on a sticker inside the glass window of those old-school models, safe from tampering hands. But the hours are printed on stickers posted on the front of the new meter machines.
Wishon's hypothesis?
If I had to bet on why this is happening, I would say the odds-on favorite is: Beat that ticket! If you get a ticket you could go to court and say that the hours were scratched off so you didn't know if you had to pay or not .... Maybe take a photo with your handy cell.
That would also explain why vandals had targeted clusters of the machines --- Watchdog spotted three affected on Broadway at Pratt Street last week, four or five vandalized machines at Aliceanna Street several months ago.
Reader Matthew Lesko also wrote to say that the Baltimore Parking Authority should add the hours of operation to the display screens of the machines.
All these meters have a screen that should be capable of displaying "hours-in-effect", which would mean no sticker is necessary. In this humble reader's opinion, the city's failing to take this approach means you should take them to task for not having a means to use the meters in this fashion.
Baltimore Parking Authority spokeswoman Tiffany James said that the meter manager is already considering taking this approach.
And just FYI --- the hours of operation for the meter pictured, on the 200 block of S. Broadway, should be 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. On the 600 block of S. Broadway, north of Aliceanna Street, it's 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Both meters are in effect Monday through Saturday.
Comments
I have stopped people from paying the meter after 8pm. They assumed that they meter was 24 hour (like downtown). So I was able to save them a few dollars. The meter accepts money for past 8, hopefully in the future, the meters will turn off at 8 so not to take money from people who shouldn't have to pay.
Posted by: Jason | July 21, 2009 10:48 AM
I thought the meters ran until 2 AM? I know the ones on S. Caroline Street did a few years ago when they were initially installed.
I think it varies from block to block ... some of the ones near Aliceanna Street looked like they had been in effect until midnight, at one point at least. --- lfk.
Posted by: Former Fells Pt. Resident | July 21, 2009 1:35 PM
I have an idea as to who/why the hours of operation on the parking meters on S. Broadway in Fells Point have been obscured.
Who - the gentlemen that hang out in the park (homeless?, panhandlers?) Why - by obscuring the hours of operation, they might be able to con people that are unfamiliar with the hours of operation into believing that the gentlemen hanging out in the park have been keeping an eye out on cars parked and feeding the meters so as to prevent cars from being ticketed.
Personal experience - Coincidentally, a week ago Friday, I was having breakfast with some friends at Jimmy's. At around 8:30, I went to my car which was parked on S. Broadway. One of the aforementioned "gentlemen" informed me that he had placed a receipt for paid parking on my car so that I would not get a ticket, and would I like to help him out with some money for having done me this favor. Because I frequently have breakfast at Jimmy's, I am well aware that the meters do not need to be fed before 9:00am, so I knew that this was a ruse. However, if I were a tourist, I might not be aware of the hours of operation, and if the hours are obscured, I wouldn't have much to go on, so maybe I would be appreciative of this "favor" that is in reality just another con.
Anyway, that's my theory.
Posted by: Richard U. | July 21, 2009 3:32 PM