Park and Forget
I don't know how many counties use a similar system, but in Finland at least, some of the street parking that is out of the city has a time limit attached to it. When I was a kid in Australia, the parking inspectors would mark tires with chalk as they walked around, so they could estimate how long a car had been parked in the same spot. In Finland, the drivers have to use a parking disk, using the next level half hour, as the start point, so if parking at 750, the disk will be set to 800.
This isn't always easy to remember to do and these days, and with the fine being 80€, it is a pretty hefty reminder. For instance, one day I ran into a store with Smallsteps to pick up some hair ties, for a couple euros. Came out and ended up paying 2000% more for them. We were out of the car about 5 mins and it was a shopping center carpark. Most of the shopping center has free and untimed parking, but there is some part of it that is part of a "sub-division" of the center, that has private parking for customers, but it is times.
And these private parks are the worst, because rather than council inspectors, they are policed by private companies whose only revenue is catching people, which means that they are very, very active. After all, they work on commission.
For a long time, the only acceptable parking disk was a blue "approved" disk, and if you used the wrong one, you'd get a fine, even if it was clear you hadn't been there longer. For example, once I was driving a brand new car that didn't have a disk in it. I was delivering it to a customer who'd bought it (long story), but had to have it overnight. So, without a disk, I parked it with a note in the window with the time on it and an explanation, but the next morning, I got a parking ticket. It was a four hour parking spot and the parking period started at 8am. It was 830.
Dicks.
However, a few years ago they changed the laws and it was possible to have other colors than blue... Wild! And then finally, they brought out some digital ones that track the motion of the car and when it stops, sets the time to the next half hour mark.
I finally got one and installed it today.
It has settings for other countries as it seems that for example in Denmark, they use a 15 minute system instead of a half hour. And, it also has some functionality for summer and winter times. Overall though, it is super simple and is just a digital clock that sets a time whenever the car stops moving.
While not quite a set and forget thing as the time limits for parking change and all of the city parking is paid parking anyway, if it saves me from a ticket once in its lifespan, then it has a 250% ROI, as it only cost 30€. It sits in the passenger front window and operates at high and very low temps, so it works all year through Finland.
Not a fan of automating a lot of things, though this is something I do think is a useful thing to automate, because the cost of fine is high, but the value in remembering to put the disk is very low, and also very low in the hierarchy of the memory when there are many other things going on in life. Miss reading a sign and pay too high of a cost.
I hate paying unnecessarily for things and over the years I have collected some pretty annoying fines for stuff, amounting to hundreds and hundreds of euros and often at times when I couldn't afford to pay anything extra. It is one of those Murphy's Law things, where when things are financially tight, that is when the unexpected kick in the wallet is delivered.
My wallet is constantly sore from all the kicking.
But, perhaps this tiny little, relatively low-tech item saves me a few times over the next few years and I can put that money to better use. The funny thing with it is though, I won't know when it saves me, because now that it is automated, I don't know if I would have remembered, or if I would have forgotten to put the disk. And, this is the problem with automation, we become blind, because we no longer get direct feedback.
But, I will park that conversation for another day.
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]
Posted Using LeoFinance Alpha
A very serious case of fines! I don't know whether to envy developed countries for that: there are laws for everything and they are complied with. Here in Venezuela most of the shopping malls have big parking lots and even if you are not a customer, you can leave your car there and nothing happens. There are also private parking lots where you pay to park and they charge by the hour. The unusual thing is that you can also park anywhere in the city, arbitrarily, and there are guys who "take care" of it. This has become a risky business! Because sometimes you don't know if the one who is "taking care" of the car is part of the gangs that rob cars. In this country you see everything! Thanks for sharing your experience and expressing your dissatisfaction. Regards, @tarazkp
It is an interesting thing to consider, because while the costs are higher here, it is safe, there are opportunities, the government isn't completely corrupt, there is decent schooling etc. Life is easier in many ways, but it isn't free.
it's easier to stop somewhere by the road and walk 😉 free parking. I personally don't understand paid parking when there is an option to park for free a few tens of meters away.
This is parking by the road. All of it is paid parking in the city and is about 7€ an hour! There are zones, so in the city, the closes parking that is free might be two kilometers away.
Wow! Thanks for sharing this content with us, I guess that's a developed country that meet up to the law and makes things easier. Well, I don't know how the packing stuff works because we don't pay a dime in my country for packing. But I guess you paying is to improve the country in one way or other, to support the government. I think if you can keep the rules and regulations, I think the best way is not to forgot using it to avoid paying any extra money.
I am not sure the governments are improving the country anywhere though :D
Didn’t know about that parking system, i can still park all day for free in the city, but means a 15 min walk.
That gizmo is saving you every time.
I don't mind the walk most of the time, but when it is pouring with rain, or in the winter with snow and low minus temps, I will pay.
Next year the office I work in is relocating to the city and hopefully I will have park there for free.
Haha ok I’m confused at this one. I need to do a few web searches to see what this disc is, it might be straight forward but we don’t have that here. We have a kiosk where we pay to park in some places but that’s usually only city centers of touristy places. If something low tech helps save you from undue revenue schemes, that’s a solid win! Lol.
I was reading your other post on tech stuff. I’m glad you may have sorted it out, those windows updates are a pain in the balls. I’ve got one that’s been fucking with my VPN connection. It was great for like 3-4 weeks then I did an update and now it sucks, most days takes me 20 minutes to connect to VPN lol annoying.
It’s funny how the wives think we aren’t doing anything but then the modem breaks, their laptop is slow or something and they make a comment or ask to fix it and that’s it. My wife can be a bit of a pit boss lately, where I can’t do enough work around the house (I vacuum, do the laundry, dishes, carpet clean, fold clothes.. the list goes on lol) and if I spend 20 minutes surfing the web hiding in the bathroom for a little bit I’m being a pain. It’s crazy hahaha.
This is the manual one.
So for instance in a 2h parking area (dictated by signage), it shows what time it starts (10 am/pm) and then after 12, it can get a fine. It sits in the window.
20 minutes to write a post in ;D
Maybe it is innate! :D I think part of the "problem" of it is that there is a constant pushing that men are lazy around the house, so no matter what they do, it is not enough.
I wish this system were in my country. The private company will be a Millionaire in a month. People just park the vehicles here and there.
Some places are crazy with their parking. I found it strange in Italy when all the Lamborghinis and Ferraris have door dings in them. No one cares.
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This is not done in Nigeria. Anyone can just park anyhow as long as people are able to pass and it is not right. Some of these car owners will even block the place that people who are trekking are supposed to pass snd it does not make sense.
Yesterday, our new president ordered that we will begin to pay fines for illegal parking. So many people complained but I like it that way...
It will be interesting to see if the fines are given, paid, and whether the money gets back to the government in Nigeria. seems there are a few corruption issues there?
Not a few
We have so much cases of corruption here
Also, I have a question
The 20% interest on HBD, is it monthly or yearly?
Automation can really blind ones eye definitely not to see beyond
In places where the cars are fitted with sensors, people are forgetting how to drive.
Even though you won't see how much you save, it can be safely assumed that you will over the long run based on historical information. So, I bet you are not all that blind and can make a good SWAG.
Automation and specifically AI is going to be something we must all soon face head on eventually.
Perhaps at the start of each year I should put 100€ into crypto, assuming I would lose at least that much on a fine.
We are constantly facing it, but our intuition doesn't seem to inform most people about how it is going to affect us long term. Most of us can only see a step into the future, but this impacts decades into the future and at that point, there is no going back.
I am not sure there is any going back now.
Some carparks in Melbourne now have a sensor that records when your car parks.
It then notifies the ticket man when you're overstayed your welcome & he can fine you.
I stopped going into the city once they brought in metered parking on Sundays & made it impossible to find free parking in a reasonable distance away.
I'd rather bicylce in if I had the time, but most items I need can be found near home.
(I do recommend though for that a person should spend a couple of days in their Capital City. It is amazing how many sights & delights you don't realise that is at your doorstep.)
Technology can be a double edged sword.
It is also a worry when local councils add projected fine revenue to their budgets & factor in raising more in the next year's budget - not quite looking out for the community.
😁
All the private paid ones are the same here. For instance, I drive in and park, and when I am leaving I start typing in my registration at a paypoint and it finds my car, and I pay with a card. I can have the receipt sent to my email if it is a work thing.
For the paid street parking, there are a couple apps that are used that you put the time in and the inspector checks your plate and can see the info.
It is all dystopic in some way.
I completely agree. Even in this city (200K) there are many things to see and do that most people walk past without realizing. Melbourne must be great these days - though I haven't visited since I was 15.
Just like any business...
Just remember to check if it have enough battery left now and then :p
As I started writing it I was wondering if there is a beep or something to warn! :D
I am not sure xD
It might depend on the brand right? :D
I just know that my mom had one and one day it was out of battery and got a parking ticket because of that xD
A 750 Danish Kroner Ticket just because the battery was out xD
It sucks to hear that there are so many fines. I am kind of glad that the parking isn't so bad here in the US because they make way too many parking lots/spaces. Outside of the big cities, I don't see many of those fines so long as I don't leave the car when they wash the streets or do maintaince with a sign outside.
What is the cost of a fine there? I reckon 80€ is pretty steep, but I guess it makes people remember. I see movies and here stories of people in the US with dozens of unpaid parking fines, but not sure if that is true. Here, if that happened, there would be an escalation in the first two weeks after the due date and then it would go to a collection agency, then a courtroom.
I don't really know because I tend to avoid the fines but I guess it would probably be like $100 or something like that.
I think there are apps these days that show the empty space on the map. And that can be a good option to park. Also there seems to be growing paid parking spaces that can park your car for upto 3 months with pre paid system. Tech and the way society is being flexible of those things, life does have some good changes ahead.
Empty spaces are okay to find here unless there is a special event, but it is the entire city and other various areas that have paid parking, or timed parking. And there are many inspectors now.
No limit here, you pay as much as your car stays. Even, some places are free at the weekend.
Finland is parking into the future!