General News
16 August, 2024
Parking fines rise by 30%
PARKING fines across Cairns are to increase by 30 per cent despite a sole councillor’s unsuccessful bid to stop the rises.
Failing to pay for parking or staying longer than the permitted time will be nearly $100 ($96) from September 2.
But Cr Matthew Tickner at Wednesday’s council meeting argued that the current fines were adequate deterrents for motorists.
“What I don’t agree with is utilising fines to plug holes in budgets,” he said.
Cr Tickner said the increases were not an exercise in discouragement but “a budget item”.
He said he had spent five years on the Cairns Chamber of Commerce and parking was one of the most significant and regular issues raised.
“Businesses don’t want an increase in fines,” Cr Tickner said.
He said the CBD was “struggling” and the council should be encouraging customers, not deterring them with higher fines.
Deputy mayor Cr Brett Olds said benchmarking showed Cairns had some of the cheapest parking in Queensland.
He said with the council’s parking app there was no excuse for parkers who were sent reminders when their ticket was due to expire. “We don’t want to be the bad guys,” he said.
Cr Brett Moller said it was not “price gouging” or “revenue raising” and the money raised from fines was “reinvested in the community”.
He said fines also deterred staff from parking outside their workplaces and shifting their cars periodically when the spaces should be available for customers.
Mayor Amy Eden said after the fine increase proposal was lodged for public submissions no one bothered responding.
She said to address the challenges with city parking, and encourage use of off-street parking and free up on-street parking, the council had reduced the hourly fee at the Lake St carpark to $1.50 an hour (down from $2.10 an hour), capped at $10 per day.
A daily rate of $6 was also introduced at the Grafton Street carpark.
A council spokeswoman said the rise followed extensive benchmarking against other like-sized councils across Queensland, which showed Cairns had some of the lowest fines in the state, and a two-week public consultation period.
“Parking fines are an important disincentive to drivers parking in restricted areas, such as taxi, bus and accessible parking bays,” she said.
“They also encourage motorists to adhere to time limits, which are in place to ensure a regular turnover of vehicles so more residents can go about their day-to-day activities, whether it be having lunch with friends, getting their tax done, or shopping.”
Parking regulations apply to all kerbside and centre median bays and off-street carparks.
From September 2, the new fines for the most common parking infringements are:
Failing to pay for parking – $96 (was $74)
Staying longer than the permitted parking time – $96 ($74)
Parking in a taxi or loading zone – $193 ($148)
Parking in a bus zone – $241 ($185).
