The Jerusalem Municipality has decided to join Tel Aviv and payment for parking in the city is moving to smartphones, a reality that will leave many chareidim in a bind.
While this has been the case in Tel Aviv, one can only wonder how Jerusalem follows suit amid the realization the capital if home to many chareidim who do not have smartphones. However, there are solutions available.
Experts point out smartphone apps are the most cost effective means for the city to collect the parking funds since it eliminates hiring personnel to fill and service the various types of parking meters and parking ticket dispensers used in the past.
It is pointed out that Jerusalem is not the first city to make the move, following Tel Aviv, Ashdod and Rehovot.
An estimated 2 million Israelis pay for parking in Israel by smartphone application including the most popular, Pango and Cellopark.
Options available to drivers without a smartphone include calling Pango or Cellopark and ‘parking’ by phone or to use the Izipark prepaid parking system.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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4 Responses
Why are you making a mountain out of a molehill (“will leave many chareidim in a bind”)????
All that is needed is a cellphone (or any phone), even a super-kosher phone like the one I and many Chareidim have. After parking, you dial *4500 (Pango) and a few clicks later, you’re done.
or maybe the powers that be are trying to send a message that certain socially undesirable people are welcome to park there?????
No reason why the Jerusalem Municipality should not make this change as there are three options for people without smartphones to use. I use the EasyPark machine as I think it is the best. You turn on the machine when you leave your car and turn it off when you return. The machine beeps each minute it is one so you also have an audible warning if you forget to turn it off. It also turns off automatically [at least in Jerusalem] when you no longer have to pay to park. You only pay for the exact time you have parked for, unlike the old fashioned parking meters or stickers where you have to guess in advance how long you want to park for and either waste money on too much time or guess wrong and risk a ticket. Unlike the other systems, you don’t have to make calls to turn it on or off.
#2 what childish nonsense are you talking? Public parking is just that, and anyone can park on any street in Yerushalayim, even a social undesirable, which I assume you think is anyone with a modern day smartphone. I’ll take my decent honest friends with smartphones over the thieves from Peleg any day. The Torah ossurs stealing. It does not ossur smartphones. Stealing peoples time, like when you block highways, is an aveira for which there is no possible teshuva. Those hooligans and whoever encourages them are the real social undesirables of our generation.