Sometimes I feel bad for Victoria residents and then I read threads like this and think... whatever! Ha ha god I'm glad I decided not to buy in Victoria.
Ironically many of these restrictions are put into place when individuals from other municipalities drive into the core, park their vehicle and leave them for an entire business day or for extended periods of time, often walking or catching a bus to their final destination. Others are put into place near businesses that attract a large number of vehicles throughout the day. The onus is on these businesses to supply enough parking to keep individuals from having to seek out parking on residential streets.
And Victoria is not the only municipality that has residential parking restrictions. Saanich, Esquimalt, and View Royal, to name just three (there may be others I'm not familiar with) have residential parking restrictions in areas that warrant them.