Sorry, parking scofflaws: Hamilton will soon stop offering you a discount deal on early fine payments.

Right now, city parking fines are cheaper if you pay up within the first seven days.

If you miss that early payment window the default cost rises, with the difference ranging from $5 to $50 extra depending on the severity of your bylaw-busting infraction. (Remember: late fees also accumulate after 15 days!)

The sorry-sooner discount was meant to encourage payment of 151,000 parking tickets handed out locally each year — and nearly half of those tickets were paid within seven days last year.

But city council voted to kill the early-bird deal Wednesday after learning many other Ontario cities have already done so — and Hamilton stands to raise an extra $350,000 a year by collecting in full.

City parking gurus no longer believe residents see the discount as an "incentive" to pay up, said manager of parking operations James Buffett. Based on residents calls, it appears the differing rates sometimes even confuse some would-be ticket payers.

"There is an anticipated increase in revenue," he said. "But it also simplifies the process."

Hamilton was becoming an outlier among Ontario cities that have adopted the "administrative penalty system," a sometimes-controversial out-of-court resolution process to deal with disputed tickets. (The province allowed cities to adopt the parallel system in 2015 to remove bylaw disputes from increasingly backlogged provincial courts.)

Cities like Mississauga, Brampton, Toronto and Burlington have all adopted administrative penalty systems for parking tickets — and all have axed discount ticket payments.

It's possible the disappearing discount will spur more disgruntled motorists to dispute their tickets, of course.

But only about 10-percent of ticketed residents bother appealing fines to a city-contracted adjudicator under the administrative penalty system. So even if more tickets are disputed, the city figures it will come out ahead.

Any boost in fine revenue also depends on what parking infractions are most, er, popular in a given year.

Buffett said many tickets are handed out for timed-out parking meters — but the difference in payment options for that infractions is small: $19 versus $24.

By contrast, parking in a "no stopping" zone is $60 early versus $75 default, while blocking a fire route will cost you $80 early and $100 after seven days. There are actually 127 different parking infractions detailed on the city website.

Some surprised residents mourned the demise of early payment Wednesday.

"I get one every two years and it inspires me to act quickly on payment. Why not raise the 'late' payment amount?" asked Richard Hamilton on Twitter.

"Got one a month ago (misread a sign — needed coffee) it was why I was quick to pay!" wrote Lisa Roddie.

Councillors didn't bat an eye at the change, though.

Coun. Brad Clark called early payment a "relic" that has proved unnecessary.

Coun. Maria Pearson approvingly noted the change will also maximize the impact of a parking crackdown around Spencer Gorge, where the city is introducing special $250 parking fines to deal with road-blocking tourists. (Early payment is $200.)

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

It won't happen immediately, but expect early-bird payment options to be phased out by the end of this year.

mvandongen@thespec.com

905-526-3241 | @Mattatthespec