The public s hostility to the system is evident in the many letters the DistrictMail has received on the subject. Leon Deacon, who was Mayor of the Helderberg at the time the municipality signed the partnership contract with ADO, says he knew from the beginning that accepting the contract was the wrong decision. He says he was the only member of the council to vote against the proposal at the time. I am still of the opinion that it was the wrong decision, he says, adding that the meters are a major point of concern for the many businesses he has dealt with in his capacity as chairperson of the Helderberg Community Policing Officers Association. I find the general public is so unhappy about it, and there seems to be an aggression building up by people who don t want to go into town any more.
People are so sick of it.
Council needs to rethink the decision, he says. But it does not appear as if the Helderberg Administration is considering this option at the moment. Dawid Falck, director of Protection Services, says the Administration is reasonably satisfied with the progress made with the system. He concedes that there are teething problems, as well as a degree of resistance to the system. It is trusted that in time public and business acceptance of the new parking meters will grow, with the current stumbling blocks seen as steps forward in the future, Mr Falck says.