A MAN has hit out after he was charged more for parking than the price stated on an information sign.
Tony Gaughan says he was “overcharged” when parking twice on Byres Road on Wednesday, April 17.
He first arrived on the street at around 10am and parked outside Little Italy at 205 Byres Road.
A sign located above the ticket machine stated that parking costs 20p for the first 30 minutes, and 20p for 10 minutes thereafter with a maximum stay allowed of three hours.
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However, Tony says when he tried to pay by machine the charges were listed as £1.40 for 15 minutes and £2.80 for half an hour.
He said: “I thought ‘that’s wrong’ and so I went onto RingGo and it was the same.
“I paid it [£1.40] but I thought they’d probably rectify it.”
The 60-year-old added: “I was charged 14 times more than the information that was on that pole.”
Tony later returned to Byres Road at around 4pm that day and again paid £1.40 via RingGo for 15 minutes of parking.
Pictures taken by Glasgow Times photographer Colin Mearns on Thursday, April 25 show a discrepancy between signage and the RingGo app which was charging £1 for up to 15 minutes and £2 for up to 30 minutes.
A spokesperson for the council has apologised for the “confusion” caused by the “older information sign” and says it will be removed as a matter of urgency.
Tony, who owns Blitzkrieg Shop on London Road, initially contacted RingGo to ask for a refund but was told he had to contact Glasgow City Council directly.
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He said: “I told RingGo I wanted my money back because the information plate is the one that matters.
“And it’s not just about me. It’s about every other person parked on Byres Road that’s had a ticket unfairly and paid 14 times more for parking than they should have.”
He continued: “They’ve [Glasgow City Council] been overcharging people for as long as that sign has been up and they should be cancelling parking tickets as well because they’ve been illegal.
"They’ve got to adhere to these information plates."
It is understood the top sign in the picture which states how people are able to pay for parking and the hours payment is required is the only one required by law.
Tony, who lives in the Southside, has so far had no response from the council but says he would like to see everyone who has paid more than the stated price at the spot refunded.
He said: "Glasgow City Council point to these information plates when they give you parking tickets, parking on double yellow lines, so they've got this one badly wrong.
"I think the question is how long has that been up there? How long have they been overcharging people?
"I'm pretty sure I'm not alone."
A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council: "We are sorry for any confusion caused by an older information sign remaining in place at this location.
"Drivers at this location are clearly directed via the signage that’s required by parking regulations to pay for their parking at the ticket machine or to use the Ringo App, both of which have the correct tariff information.
"The information sign showing the older tariff will be removed as a matter of urgency."
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