We parked downtown on Central Street on Thursday right at the 13-mile mark of the Boston Marathon route. We went to put our money in the meter, but alas, the plastic bubble on the meter through which you read how much time is left was completely blurred by condensation inside the glass/plastic. We tossed a couple of quarters in to be safe, but then noticed as we walked down the street that every meter, at least 20 or so, had the same problem. We happened upon a meter checker and asked him what was up with the meters. He told us it had been raining a lot and continued on his way, using a handheld device to monitor the meters. We suggested it wouldn’t really be fair to ticket someone given the circumstances, but he countered that you could look at the back of the meter to see if the time had expired. That’s true, you could, but you still couldn’t see how much time you had left. So you basically either had to max out the meter or check back often if you weren’t sure how much time was left. We weren’t in our space long and didn’t get a ticket (and we didn’t see the meter checker write any up), but we’re thinking anyone parked on the westbound side of Central Street who did get a ticket at least during the 1-2pm timeframe would have a legit appeals case on their hands. We’re not sure if this was somehow a one-day problem or if this is a common issue that needs to be fixed.
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