It’s no secret that some people like to commiserate over their shared frustrations (hey, Jerry Seinfeld built a whole career from it). And in the age of social media, even more people have the platform to share their frustrations, both big and small, sometimes going viral in the process.
That’s what happened to Threads user @remycoded who posted about his irritation with a parking app. People of a certain age may remember a time when paid public parking meant dropping a few quarters into a meter. These days, many municipalities rely on apps instead, which gets old fast if you travel enough to need several apps.
“Why does paying for two hours of parking require an app, an account, an email verification, and my car’s life story?” the Threads user posted. “Bro. I’m trying to leave the car, not enroll it in college.”
The post struck a nerve, racking up more than 12,600 likes and hundreds of comments within a day. Within a day of sharing the message, the post from @remycoded had received more than 12,600 likes and hundreds of comments.
Commenters Share Their Own Parking App Woes
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This was a two-part post, so @remycoded went on to share another frustration about these apps. “By the time you reset your password, your parking has expired,” he wrote with a laughing-crying emoji. “Follow for more complaints that should’ve been a group text.”
“Or better yet, you can’t do all that because the parking garage doesn’t have cell service,” another person added.
“What am I supposed to do if I’m out and about without my phone? Am I just not allowed to use a meter?” a third person chimed in.
Some Believe Companies Use These Apps to Collect Data
While the apps may seem convenient to anyone who doesn’t regularly carry cash around, some commenters believe that needing an app for everything is just a ploy to gain access to sensitive user data. “So they can collect personal data to sell,” one person posted.
That prompted @remycoded to joke about skimming a lot of the instructions as he was signing up. “Oh yeah, that’s probably in the terms and conditions I skipped.”
Some Say Parking Apps Have Perks
It wasn’t all doom and gloom in the comments, though, since some commenters pointed out benefits of the apps.. “Actually bro, parking apps are people friendly,” one person wrote. “You can put in the maximum time, and then when you get back you ‘stop parking’ and only end up paying for the time you were parked. Don’t sell it short.”
However, a brief internet search seems to indicate that most apps will charge you for your agreed-upon time, no matter when you leave. And policies vary by city and provider. For example, according to ParkMobile, you can stop your parking session if your municipality allows it. But those who use the app in areas that don’t allow early termination will still be forced to pay whatever amount they originally agreed to.