“From R20 to R150!”: Gent Comes Up With Easy Way To Avoid Hefty Parking Lot Fees in Cape Town

• A UCT law graduate shared a video showing how he avoids paying the steep jump in parking fees on Kloof Street in Cape Town
• The parking charges increase from R20 for two hours to a whopping R150 for three hours, prompting his creative solution
• South Africans reacted with amusement to his parking hack, though some warned playfully that he could face fines for the clever workaround

A Cape Town model and UCT law graduate has shared a cheeky way to avoid steep parking fees in the city centre. Content creator @jaden.hoedemaker posted a video of himself and a female friend sitting in his car as they prepared to execute their plan to beat what they called "ridiculous" parking charges on Kloof Street.

In the video posted in May, Jaden explains the unusual pricing structure that sparked his creative thinking. The parking facility charges R10 for the first hour and R20 for two hours, but then jumps dramatically to R150 for three hours. The rates continue with R200 for six to 12 hours, and a R200 penalty for lost tickets.

Annoyed by the massive jump between the two-hour and three-hour rates, Jaden and his friend came up with a simple solution. After paying the R20 for their two-hour stay, they planned to drive out of the parking lot, exit the facility, make a three-point turn, and then immediately drive back in to get a fresh ticket, essentially resetting their parking clock.

"It's quite absurd for parking fees to jump from 10 rand to 20 rand, then to 150 rand for just three hours," Jaden says in the video, laughing as they realise they're about to get the same parking bay they just left without having to pay the steep R150 charge.

Watch the Facebook clip below:

Cape Town parking rates in context

While Cape Town residents might complain about parking fees, a 2020 study by UK-based car maintenance service fixter.co.uk found that the Mother City has the third-lowest parking fees out of 65 major cities worldwide. Only Delhi in India and Buenos Aires in Argentina offered more affordable parking at the time.

The study looked at parking costs in five areas of each city: airports, shopping district car parks, shopping district street parking, sports stadiums, and city halls. Cape Town's overall parking costs were found to be 77.6% below other countries.

South Africans react to the parking hack

@Audie Brophy jokingly warned:

"Not so clever... Your clip was sent to law enforcement. The say that you could be fined R500 or will need to spend 3 months in jail😂😂😂"

@Thabang Kelvin Dubeni suggested an improvement:

"Why not walk there and scan, then get a new ticket, instead of driving and making a U-turn."

@Sharlene Coopoosammy approved of the approach:

"Find a loophole, expose the system, beat the system 😂"

@Marie Davis claimed seniority in the hack:

"This old lady is ahead of you, been doing that a good few times 😂"

@Tshepo Itu Mahloane agreed with the frustration:

"The jump from R20 to R150 is insane😂"

@Chris Thusi joked about what might justify the price:

"3 hours comes with a car wash, full house😂"

Other money-saving stories making waves

• Briefly News recently reported on a young schoolboy who started a thriving Nik Naks business at his school.
• A South African woman's humorous post about downgrading from Nivea to Clere body lotion after being hit hard by the recent 0.5% VAT increase sparked a national conversation.
• A Polokwane content creator went viral with her practical shopping advice, suggesting people only buy clothing items that can create at least five different outfits.

Source: Briefly News