Edmonton is examining a tiered parking fine system that would discount tickets paid early and increase penalties for late payment. City administration described the possible changes in a report to council’s Community and Public Services Committee.

The city’s current system charges one flat fine for all parking violations. The report estimates it would cost about $1 million to upgrade the ticketing system, with annual maintenance expenses afterward. A tiered approach would likely reduce revenue from parking tickets.

Coun. Jo Anne Wright, who represents Ward Sspomitapi, said Monday the report estimated a revenue decline of about $300,000 to $400,000. “In the report, it says we would reduce the revenue by about $300,000 to $400,000, but if it can simplify the processes that we undertake and do it more efficiently electronically, I think it would be worth looking at pursuing,” Wright told reporters.

Five of seven large Canadian cities, including Calgary, use tiered or incentive-based systems to encourage early payment, the report says. Those cities also have integrated e-ticketing systems. Edmonton collected $8.3 million from 112,613 parking tickets last year, an average of about $74 per ticket. The report outlines how Edmonton could implement the system; CTV News Edmonton’s Jeremy Thompson contributed to the report.

Based on reporting by CTV News Edmonton.