The Cape Town Traffic Department is reviewing a magistrate’s decision to acquit a Parow man who did not pay a parking fine. Has he set a legal precedent?
The Cape Town Traffic Department is reviewing a magistrate’s decision to acquit a Parow man who did not pay a parking fine. Has he set a legal precedent?
CARtoday.com reported on Thursday that Rupert Grundling pointed out problems in the parking system in Cape Town when explaining in court why he did not pay the fine he received in Wale Street in Cape Town on April 25.
“You have to drive blocks and blocks in the city to find a proper place to park your car, and when you finally get to the parking meter, you find out after having parked that you need a card to pay,” he said.
Grundling said the card cost R40 and he only wanted to park for 30 minutes, plus he said the card could not be used outside the city centre. He said motorists who did not know the city would struggle to find a place to buy the cards.
But Cape Town traffic chief Mervyn Merrington told the he would refer the matter to his legal department for review. “If he was found not guilty it could set a dangerous example, but I will first have to study the specifics of the case before I comment further,” he said.
Michael Farr, chief executive of the Cape Town Partnership, which manages the parking system in the city centre, told the newspaper he could not understand how Grundling was found not guilty.
“I am a little surprised by the magistrate’s ruling, because it is very clear on all meters in the CBD what the payment system is. In addition, you can use the parking cards all over the Western Cape,” he said.
Farr said that Grundling did not have to buy the R40 card. “He could also have bought parking cards from the marshals who are always available,” he said. He added that parking time could be bought by the hour for R5,80 from the marshals.
