HALIFAX -- Big changes to parking took effect in the Halifax area Tuesday as the municipality kicked its parking meters to the curb.
The change didn’t arrive without a few speed bumps.
“Residents might have gone to a pay station first thing this morning and either were unable to complete their transaction or got all the way through and received an error code,” said Victoria Horne, the manager of HRM parking services.
The HRM expected glitches at the start as it replaces parking meters with electronic pay stations.
One driver praised the HotSpot app he used to pay, but wishes getting it didn’t cost him $20.
Parking zones are also new, and Gilles Dubois isn’t thrilled.
“You can only park four hours in the same zone,” Dubois said.
Dubois works at the Halifax Infirmary, where, unless you’re a doctor, the waitlist for a monthly parking pass is up to four years.
He parks on the street and tries to avoid paying by moving every two hours.
New rules mean he can still do that where parking is free, but not where he sees a sign indicating the spot is in a pay zone, where payment is required.
“So you could end up having to park from the hospital, down past Connaught, to go onto a different zone,” Dubois said.
Or to avoid the hassle, park in the parkade.
“Then there’s no place for the patient to park. So then we have a problem,” Dubois said.
“It has never been the intention of on-street downtown parking to facilitate or provide parking all day for residents,” Horne said.
While parking enforcement was out, the city says the focus is not on ticketing for now, but on education.
The Spring Garden Business Association says the pleasant surprise is people are discovering the underground parkades in the area. If anyone had problems with the pay stations Tuesday, the city encourages you to call 311.
