Apr 4, 2017 3 min read

I should have kept my mouth shut. That’s what I get for being greedy about a measly $4. But when an apparent $4 overcharge for one day’s parking could theoretically continue every day, the money starts to add up and I felt compelled to take action.

My other job takes me to work in downtown Pittsburgh and finding parking there is a daily challenge. It’s like playing a game of chess, really, depending on what shift I’m working and what the daily or hourly rates are at various garages or metered areas as well as factoring in what space is available.

No, work doesn’t pay for us to park. I don’t work normal hours and I don’t work a traditional workweek, so I don’t purchase a monthly parking lease in the garage beneath work. I do have a weekend lease, which is extremely affordable and also allows you to park there in the evenings. There was a kerfuffle a few years ago when the garage owners dropped holidays from the lease and delayed the time you can enter for overnights from 5 to 7 p.m. Now, you can’t park there for weeknight Pirates games, concerts or shows unless you want to arrive late.

Weekends are a breeze and I can park safely when I arrive at zero-dark-thirty in the morning. Weekday early mornings are a different story.

Parking anywhere more than one block away at zero-dark-thirty is scary, so the best options are parking on the street or in a nearby garage. Neither is cheap. A few weeks ago, I parked on one street and went out after my shift to find my car had been towed. After paying the $145 tow fee and a $99 parking ticket, I learned not to park in that area during rush hour.

I bit the bullet last week and parked in the more expensive garage. Two out of three days, I was there longer and was charged $24. The third day, I left early enough to avoid the extra $4 charge … or so I thought. When the machine still charged me the full amount, I double-checked my ticket then called customer service.

After sending photos of the tickets, the manager called me to apologize but then delivered bad news. Yes, he said, you have been incorrectly charged but in the wrong direction. Since I arrive so early, the machine should have charged me the overnight rate plus full daily rate … totaling $26.

I said, “Well, you’re not going to start gouging me for that, are you?” He said he had to check why the machine was charging it that way and was obligated to correct it.

So I guess I actually saved $6 last week over what the management thinks it should charge. Fortunately, I don’t work that schedule very often but am hoping the computer error cannot be fixed.

Kristin Emery can be reached at kristinemery1@yahoo.com