Cold response to ‘pay-for-parking’ launch

The much talked about ‘payfor-parking’ system was launched Tuesday, and was met with a less than enthusiastic response from the public and drivers.

When the media visited downtown Georgetown to see how people were dealing with the new development there were a number of concerns that were raised by the public. The majority of people had no knowledge that the launch was Tuesday. They did not know where to get the parking meter cards, and the vehicles that parked in the designated bays openly disregarded the need to purchase a parking ticket. One male individual opined that much more needs to be done on the ground, since people do not know how to use the meters. “I walked the length of Regent Street and I could not see any ticket on any of the cars that were parked in the demarcated parking bays. There were a number of empty bays, an indication of people’s response to this unpopular project,” the man said. Many taxi drivers expressed displeasure about the $232 dollars per hour being charged to park. They said that they will not be able to pay it and emphasized that there should be special provisions for taxi drivers. Gregory Mingo, a taxi driver that operated around the Stabroek Market area wants to know how people are going to manage with this new expense. He said for those taxi drivers that do not have their own vehicles it will be very burdensome for them to absorb that parking fee. Mingo said on top of buying gas and paying the daily fee to the car owners they will now have to pay for parking every day. The disgruntled driver said he parks for four hours minimum per day and works five days per week. He calculates that will cost him $4,640 per week to park. He was furious with the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) and SCS and called them ‘blood suckers that have no care for anyone but themselves”. Many of the drivers said they understood the need for the parking meters, but believe that the price to park is too high. (Kaieteurnews.com)