After almost two months' community discussion, council’s consultation period for the controversial parking plan has finished.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
City of Ballarat’s bold proposal was revealed in May, slicing the CBD into three district zones with different prices from 50 cents per hour, with no time limit on how long you can stay in a car park
While residents have been engaged in an online survey, through a Sturt Street pop-up shop and in ward workshops, some are still unconvinced City of Ballarat will be able to make the radicial changes functional as Ballarat grows.
Survey results released on Thursday show strong public push back against some elements, with only 14.8 per cent in favour of increasing the cost of the parking bays close to the CBD.
Around 75 per cent of those surveyed supported a free first residential parking permit, with an option to receive a second or third one. City of Ballarat originally flagged an additional permit may cost residents over $100.
The Smarter Parking Plan will now be revised based on consultation and will return to the council chamber later this year for debate.
What is Ballarat's take on our car parking woes?
- A smartphone app to pay for parking is wanted by 53.1 per cent of locals.
- Only 8.4 per cent of those surveyed want paid parking extended in Zone 1 to 7pm.
- 69.3 per cent support topping up parking time allocation from any CBD meter.
- 53 per cent of people support two-hours of free parking in zones 2 and 3.
A Ballarat resident who attended one of the community workshops in September said she believed residential sections were being targeted in the parking overhaul as ‘areas of least resistance’.
The resident was told at the meeting that dealing with Public Transport Victoria to improve options is a lengthy process, but believes council could trial new methods to reduce the parking burden c, like allowing people to park in vacant council assets in a ‘park and ride’ scenario.
“What they’re suggesting now, it’s not going to encourage any change, we live close to the hospitals and its just going to move the problem out further,” she said.
In early September, City of Ballarat executive manager of regulatory services Amy Boyd said that until the municipality could “fix existing public transport issues, there will be little change in parking behaviour”.
More than 36 per cent of respondents were CBD workers, 34 per cent were residents, 10 per cent were shoppers and only four per cent were business owners.