Parking pain continues to dominate Ballarat’s election discussion, with the Liberals promising $20 million to create more free parking in the city’s centre.
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Standing just metres from the Town Hall on Friday, opposition leader Matthew Guy said if he was elected, an additional 1500 free car parks would be created in the Ballarat CBD.
Mr Guy said the Liberal-National coalition would work with City of Ballarat to identify sites for the new car parks, which could include multi-decks, and would see some current major car parks upgraded. It is currently unknown where the car parks will be placed, and if they will be free all day or timed parking.
“As Ballarat’s population grows, car parking is out of control in central Ballarat, and it needs to have action to fix that problem,” Mr Guy said.
WATCH THE FULL VIDEO OF MATTHEW GUY IN BALLARAT
Mr Guy said he expected an additional 1,500 car spaces would encourage job growth, commuter parking and push more shoppers into Ballarat’s CBD. He said the redevelopment of the Ballarat Train Station had been a catalyst for the reduced parking.
It follows a $14 million Labor election promise on Wednesday to build an extra 1000 free car parks in the CBD if re-elected.
Premier Daniel Andrews said he believed City of Ballarat had an “obsession” with paid parking, following the creation of its contentious parking plan, which would see 4,300 new paid parks be created in Ballarat.
Mr Guy denied Friday’s election promise was an attempt to one-up Labor, stating his team had been working on it “for some time with the council”.
The dual election promises are an almost-unprecedented step, with a state government and opposition both pledging to fund a solution for a contentious council issue prior to the November 24 election.
Mr Guy said the $20 million would be provided directly to City of Ballarat as they were “best placed” to identify new free car parks, while Mr Andrews said his pledged 1000 car parks would be decided based on discussion with the council and consultation of Ballarat residents.
City of Ballarat confirmed on Friday that the dual election promises would not impact the final outcome for the Smarter Parking Plan, which is set to return to council chambers for approval before the end of the year.
Wendouree Liberal candidate Amy Johnson said people aren’t coming into the city centre because it is “very difficult currently to get a car park near where they want to go”, and election promise would encourage a “buzzing” CBD.
Guy’s other Friday election promise: energy efficient appliances for low-income homes
Mr Guy announced on Friday that an elected Liberal-National coalition would offer discounts of 40 per cent for new energy-efficient fridges and 50 per cent for new energy-efficient TVs for between 40,000 and 85,000 low income households in Victoria.
He said four-year, $40 million proposal to replace older appliances would cut the cost of living and “save hundreds of dollars each year” in bills.
The Liberal-National coalition stated to be eligible for the proposed scheme, you must be a resident of Victoria and hold a Pensioner Concession Card, Health Care Card from Centrelink or a Veterans’ Affairs Gold Card. To apply, your current fridge must be at least six years old and your TV must be a plasma or cathode ray tube (CRT) television.
