Is Montreal’s parking app ripping drivers off?

Bob Murphy says the city’s parking meter app is shaving seconds off the time paid.

A Montreal handyman says drivers are getting ripped off by the city’s parking app.

A tongue-in-cheek video posted on Bob Murphy’s account shows that he is getting less time than what he paid for.

The video shows that despite paying for five minutes of parking, the countdown starts up with 45 seconds less time, at four minutes and 15 seconds.

“I just started up the app 15 seconds ago. Where did that 45 seconds go? It’s not much, but it adds up,” he said.

He spends his days driving around the Plateau and Outremont, and considering how much time he spends on the road, says the amount of parking adds up.

“Minimum of twice a day at different locations, but sometimes I’ll use them repetitively,” said Murphy.

CTV News tested the theory by selecting a spot and choosing five minutes of parking.

After paying, the app said only 4:30 remained on the spot.

The Agence de Mobilité de Montréal’s FAQ page says that “as soon as a parking space has been paid, a timer appears.”

Murphy told CTV News that he also ran tests on the new Mobicité app, which is set to replace the former P$ Mobile Service app at the end of the month, and experienced the same issue.

City officials responded, insisting that with the new app, the countdown begins when payment is confirmed.

“Remember that when a person registers their parking space in the app, it is assumed that they are already parked and using that space,” stated Caroline Labelle, a senior advisor of public affairs with the city.

For Murphy, his time is money.

“They made a fortune off of me, but it’s good. It’s a good service,” he said, adding that it’s about time for the city to fix the issue.