Pay and Display: Why no change?

It's something that has really niggled me for ages. Most vending machines are designed to give change if you insert coinage over the required cost of the product you are buying. I'd guess it's quite simple to program a vending machine to give change.

Why then, to the best of my knowledge, do no Pay and Display (and other Parking Meters) in Sheffield give change? Is it actually legal for these machines not to give change? After all, we're not so much talking of an overpayment here, but a question of actually having the correct change.

Call me suspicious, but the fact that they don't give change alongside the fact that the tariffs are always priced in silly amounts (say, 85p for an hour's parking, never a straight 50p or £1) leads me to think that the council know they're onto a nice little earner with so many motorists overpaying to go about their business in the city centre.

I wonder just how much the council rakes in through these overpayments? I would very much like to know.

In York, there is a system where you can pay to park using the SMS facility on your mobile phone. You give your debit card details and money is taken from your bank. When your ticket is about to expire you receive a message informing you so. You then, depending on the type of car-park you are in (short stay, long stay, medium stay) have the option of extending your stay without having to traipse all the way back to the car park. An excellent idea except for the fact that the operator charges a 'handling fee' for processing your ticket. In other words, the temptation to squeeze that little bit more out of the motorist is just too much for the council.

So councillors, when will we get Pay and Display machines which remember, you managed to program so that the motorist has to insert his or her registration number, that gives the motorist change back when they insert different coinage to that needed to park?

Or would it be easier (and cheaper) to program the machine to shout out when you insert the money 'Couldn't you have taken the bus?' instead?

Along the same lines, it really irritates me when you have to type in part (or all, as I found in Buxton last week) of your car's registration number to get your ticket.

This means that if you pay for a four hour slot and leave after 2 hours, you can't give your ticket to someone else coming in, even though they will be occupying the same place. Which effectively means that people are being charged twice for the same parking space. Another nice little earner for the council, eh?

I probably shouldn't have put that on here - next thing you know it'll be appearing at a pay and display near you.

Have you noticed that on most parking mahcines that don't give change (we'll the fair few around the city that I've used!) the time limits listed are actually just guides to the parking cost? i.e. if it's 50p for 30 minutes, and £1 for an hour, you can actually put 75p in and get 45 minutes, or 25p for 15 minutes. So, if you over pay one time limit, but under pay another, you aren't restricted to the lower time limit, it automatically adjusts the length of time you can park for.

I agree it's annoying that these machines don't give change, but it doesn't take much effort to make sure I've got some change in my pocket before I drive into town.

I imagine the reason might be that not being able to give change more than halves the mechanics of the machine, therefore making it cheaper and less prone to vandalism.

As for the tariffs, well they are indeed ludicrous. Still, they know people will pay them.

It's because the council want to stop poor people clogging up the city centre.

It's because the council want to stop poor people clogging up the city centre.

So... how does this fit in with First mainline raising bus fares four times in one year

So... how does this fit in with First mainline raising bus fares four times in one year

They don't want poor people using their buses ?

I hesitate to suggest a conspiracy, - but you have to wonder