The City of Ballarat's new parking plan begins on Saturday, February 1 - and it appears residents still have heaps of questions.
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Remember, there's two zones for parking in the CBD, paid and unpaid. In the paid zones, the first hour is free and every hour costs $3 after that, but you'll need to put your licence plate number into the new app, or one of the new parking meters that are being installed across the city.
Outside of that, in Zone 2, time limits will apply.
How do people with disability permits interact with the system?
This system has not changed for people with a blue disability permit, they must still display their permit on their dash, that is all.
How do the licence plate scanning vehicles work with disability permits?
The system will notify the officers that there is a vehicle that has not paid, the officer will then do a visual inspection to check for a permit.
Will people with disability permits still get double time in disability car parks?
Yes
Can people with a disability permit park in other car parks without penalty?
Yes
I'm using my disability permit in a car that is not my own, how will the licence plate scanning vehicle see I hold a permit?
The permit is attached to a person as opposed to a vehicle, so as long as the permit is clearly displayed there will have no concerns.
How does the app work with company cars?
The app allows multiple vehicles to be registered within the app. This will be at companies' discretion on how they do this.
Will people driving company cars parking in Zone 1 be unable to use the app?
No, see above.
How safe will our data be? How long does Council hold onto licence plate location data?
All data is managed by the third party (CellOPark) and is compliant with all relevant legislation and Council privacy and data policy.
It will only hold onto the data for the purpose of infringement management and ongoing court matters.
Will location data from the app be used in any way by council, other than enforcement?
No
Will usage data be anonymised?
The app meets all Australian standards and the data can only be used for the purposes of the Road Safety Act.
Can businesses apply for short term parking permits - for example, couriers or security firms park at different places all day in the CBD for very short times, is there an option for a permit?
No
Is council confident in the Cellopark app?
Yes
Were there any focus groups or similar consultation that recommended the app, or was it chosen through the tender process?
A very rigorous tender process that saw over 14 different providers.
In what circumstances would you get a ticket in the mail instead of on your car?
Post-outs are a legal form of issuing infringements and is done now. The most common reason for a post-out is around school crossings, where it is either not safe to get out of the vehicle or in high traffic areas.
Can you go into more detail on the appeal process for people who genuinely believe they have a grievance?
Anyone can appeal a parking infringement via the website or in writing. People may also select to have the infringement heard via the Magistrates' Court. This is unchanged from the existing process.
Are businesses allowed to place "reserved" parking cones in front of their businesses in what appears to be public on-street car parks?
No
Can you confirm the four-hour parking zones in front of the Ballarat Law Courts on Grenville Street South (and the row of similar four-hour parks in the Bridge Mall car park) are now under the broader zone 1 rules - one hour free then $3 an hour?
Yes, those parking zones will be replaced by 1 hour free parking, and $3 an hour after that.
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