The man people love to hate: Tag along with a P.E.I. meter man
Tom Kennedy says the job is tame compared to his 30-year policing career
Most people would probably have second thoughts about taking a job where members of the public berate you — or even swear at you, for simply doing your job.
"Oh, I've been sworn at," said Tom Kennedy, one of the four commissionaires enforcing pay parking in downtown Charlottetown.
"I'm not going to make them happy, but I don't enter into any type of rebuttal or whatever. I just move on," he said.
He has patrolled his four-block section of the downtown for the past five years, and the stress is a lot less than it was in his previous career.
"I was a policeman for 30 years with the O.P.P. [Ontario Provincial Police] but whatever people say to me here on the streets of Charlottetown about what I do now is nothing compared to what you deal with when you're policing, so it's very tame."
Not always easy street
While dealing with irate drivers may be tamer than policing, it's not always easy street.
"There have been a few times when people will be annoyed and what they want to do is show their annoyance with me," said Kennedy.
"They'll get in their vehicle and I'll still be close by and the odd time, they'll speed out or get close to me just to show they're annoyed. I just walk away."
Excuses, excuses
He hears a lot of excuses from drivers whose time is up.
"They know the meter is expiring and they say to me, 'I paid enough money and I'm here and it must have just ran out,'" he said.
If Kennedy hasn't finished writing the parking ticket, the driver may just get off, but if the ticket is on the vehicle — "I won't take it back," he said.
Kennedy advises drivers to dispute the ticket if they don't think it was warranted.
An unofficial tour guide
Despite the occasional minor incidents, Kennedy said the positives by far outweigh the negatives.
"I classify myself as a people person and I do enjoy the dialogue with people I meet on the street," he said.
Kennedy also acts as an unofficial tour guide every summer.
"When the tourists are off the cruise ships and they're asking for things to see, places to go, they're asking for reference points and I just enjoy that whole time of talking to them."
Kennedy works on the streets from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday. He does his route twice a day, once in the morning, and once in the afternoon.
Longing for summer days
Since he's outside most of the day, Kennedy knows to dress for the cold.
"I've got four layers on from the waist up, couple layers below," he said.
Kennedy puts up with the cold days, but you can tell he yearns for summer.
"I think the best is to go out on a nice sunny day. It's warm, a bit of a breeze and it's busy. People are up and down the streets and I'm constantly interacting with people and before you know it the day is over."
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