Local authorities nationwide started implementing a new policy to crack down on illegal parking last Thursday. Most people welcome stricter enforcement, since it presumably means safer streets and a smoother traffic flow. But there are many who don't like the new system, in particular people who operate motor vehicles for a living. The media has concentrated on the crackdown's likely effect on delivery people, since there's a widespread belief that a vehicle will be ticketed even if it stops for one minute. Wide shows have predicted swarms of parking monitors sweeping through downtown areas tagging everything in sight. It's the attack of the meter maids.

Except that the new monitors seem to be, mostly, middle-aged men. One of the main features of the new system is that the police will no longer check parking, at least in large cities. That work is being outsourced to private companies who bid for contracts with local government bodies. These bodies train and certify the selected company's employees as parking patrols.

An NHK report aired two weeks ago looked at other examples of outsourced parking enforcement operations. South Korea's seems to be successful since its main purpose is to discourage illegal parking, rather than punish violators. London's, however, is fraught with problems. It uses contract workers as monitors who, because they work on commission, write as many citations as possible. Some delivery people receive as many as four tickets a day.