[NewsPoster]

New York City is considering upgrading its options for paying parking tickets to include more modern platforms, such as Apple Pay, according to MarketWatch. The focal point would be a new mobile app allowing people to scan a ticket and then use Apple Pay, or other options such as PayPal or potentially Bitcoin. The same app would give drivers the choice to schedule a hearing instead.

At the moment the only payment options include the web, mail, or going to a courthouse. Paying via the web incurs a 2.5 percent "convenience" fee, which may actually deter some people from going the online route.

Because New York reaps roughly $600 million a year in parking fines, such an upgrade could help not just the city but any parties collecting transaction fees. Apple is believed to earn about 0.15 percent per transaction, which could mean thousands or even millions of dollars from New York parking violations alone.

[HPeet]

Inherently evil and on the dark side.

Who is the convenience and security of 'Apple Pay' supposed to about for?

[HPeet]

Sorry, missed the operative 'be' in 'to be about for'. (Still gramatically incorrec)t.

But the larger point is that Apple has always been about enabling us VS them. Tapping an iPhone to enable the city to collect...?

Alright, grammar nazis aside, the whole idea of an online convenience fee is exactly the opposite of what society needs to move forward. For parking tickets, the price should be whatever price it is, with no bass-ackwards "convenience fee." But for normal bills or loans, that fee should go to paper-based statements, and/or discounted rates for online statements and payroll deduction.

Personally I don't see much happening in the way of using Apple Pay for parking tickets until you can use Apple Pay to pay the parking meter instead of using rolls of quarters. (Yes I know it's essentially 2015 and we still use parking meters with the quarter slots and wind-ups on them. At least here in town we do.)