Predatory parking fine is like a radar trap

My wife, a friend and I went to our first HarbourCats game. It was an exciting game with many runs scored so it took longer than normal.

When I returned to my car, parked in the Royal Athletic Park lot, I found that I had been ticketed for overtime parking by the City of Victoria with a $40 fine — $20 if paid by August 30.

When parking at 6 p.m. I paid for three hours and 15 minutes, but the game ran beyond 9:15 p.m. so I was technically parking overtime.

My concern is not the fine, which I can and will pay, but the public impact on baseball fans. It seems someone patrols the parking lot looking for infractions which occur when someone underestimates the time it takes to complete a ball game.

To me, this is akin to a radar trap, and this predatory practice should be discontinued.

Ed White Cobble Hill