The parking version of Uber is banned by the government, Bitcoin technology comes to the rescue

Do you often find yourself in a situation where you have a lot of things to do but you just can't find a parking space? Now, this problem may be solved.

Many companies, such as MonkeyParking and OrganicParking, are trying to decentralize parking management. Instead of driving around looking for a parking spot, you can just download an app and everything will be done for you. When you need a parking spot, you can open the app and bid on the parking spots in your area. If you don't need the parking spot anymore, you can give it to the higher bidder. Doesn't it sound revolutionary? Especially for Bitcoin users who want to save on transaction fees.

Kostas Terzidis, CEO and founder of Organic Parking, said: "Bitcoin, a fair trade currency, fits the sharing economy model of Organic Parking - p2p sharing, simple to use, low transaction fees, etc. These characteristics are exactly what Organic Parking needs. And it can meet the needs of different users.

San Francisco City Government Stops Monkey Parking

The San Francisco city government said apps like MonkeyParking are illegal and warned the companies to stop providing such services.

"How can a company use public resources for private gain? Why would we get involved when public transportation, public roads, are supposed to be managed by the government?" said Dennis Herrera, the city attorney.

The San Francisco government issued a cease-and-desist order to MonkeyParking, requiring the company to stop the service by July 11, 2014. However, as of July 6 this year, users can still download and use the app. Dennis Herrera said MonkeyParking will face a fine of $2,500 for each transaction. In addition, according to San Francisco city law, citizens are not allowed to buy, sell or rent public parking spaces, so users will also face a fine of $300.

MonkeyParking appears to be the first app to be directly targeted by the government. However, other cities, such as Boston and Los Angeles, are also preparing to crack down on similar apps.

Bitcoin for decentralized applications

Bitcoin can solve the dilemma these apps face. The government can prohibit payment processors from verifying fiat currency transactions for these apps, but the government cannot prevent Bitcoin miners from verifying these transactions.

Our world is moving towards decentralized verification, where individuals decide who they can trust. The emergence of Uber has brought severe competition to taxis, and the number of taxis is declining, so Uber has also taken millions of dollars from the government. Because taxi drivers must obtain a business license and pay a certain fee to the government to operate. The business license is a guarantee of the driver's credibility.

Uber does the same thing, but through a democratized rating system. Passengers can rate drivers, and drivers can rate passengers, ensuring that both drivers and passengers can be trusted.

What local governments can do

In fact, these apps are also contributing to protecting the environment and reducing pollution, while also improving the efficiency of using various resources.

Then the government can also be inspired to participate and create its own APP, which may be a new way to tax people (the government's usual style). The government can allow citizens to use these APPs to make transactions, and then collect a certain tax on each transaction. Especially Bitcoin combined with smart contracts will make this very convenient. If smart contracts are not used, the government can also choose to use blockchain technology to build an automatically running application.

This way, there is no need to involve a third party, and you can just sit in your office and receive Bitcoins.