Antique & Classic Cars Blog

Anybody who’s waited tables understands the mandatory gratuity concept–big tables require a lot of service….

It’s annoying though when Minneapolis’s parking meters force a tip from you–taking more than the stated cost of service. The old kitchen-timer style meters either worked or they didn’t, but the more recent electronic ones randomly eat quarters without registering more time.

When gas costs over three bucks a gallon and cigarettes cost–I don’t smoke, what, ten bucks a cigarette?–twenty-five cents seems small. But unless you park all the time, your quarter supply is often limited. You look in your pocket, you got two quarters, you need ten minutes to run to the bank or post office… Cool. Then the meter eats one. Now you gotta be one of those impatient customers or hope the meter readers are on another block.

If the meter eats the first quarter, should you put in a second–or will it eat that too? Is there another spot around? If it eats the second and the third–it happens–do you drive away from the time it registered or keep gambling?

It’s not like casinos or amusement parks where employees wander around with money changers to make it right. You have no useful recourse. Good spaces are seldom plentiful, businesses may or may not want to give you more change. The quarter the meter ate could cost you a $30 or $40 ticket and fighting it is not worth the time.

Since meters are a game of chance, they should at least make it fun. Stick a little crane in there and some plastic rings, stickers and Spongebob Squarepants stuff. The meter either gives you the time you paid for or lets you try to pick-up a toy and swing it over to the drop-off chute. That way, at least you wouldn’t be so annoyed when your quarter gets you bupkiss.

This entry was posted on Friday, April 4th, 2008 at 6:51 am and is filed under Car stories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.