Night Parking
Published by MDMUAZZAM under on 6:17 PM
Anger at end to free night parking in Melbourne's CDB
# By Evonne Barry
# From: Herald Sun
# May 10, 2010
FREE night-time parking in Melbourne's CBD will be a luxury of the past under a revenue-raising plan that has angered motorists and traders.
Diners, revellers, shoppers and sports fans will soon pay $4 to park in metered spaces between 7.30pm and midnight.
The new charge, announced in the City of Melbourne's draft budget yesterday, will raise an extra $1.9 million, pushing the annual parking fee grab to more than $38 million.
Lord Mayor Robert Doyle said that motorists should "factor in" the fee to their expenses, adding that proceeds would pay for safety initiatives.
He noted the $4 charge - applied to 3000 metered spots across the CBD - remained a much cheaper option than the city's 30,000 private parking spaces.
But business owners warned the fees could work against the council's ambitions to shift the focus from alcohol-based evening entertainment.
Restaurant and Catering Australia chief executive John Hart said similar initiatives interstate had backfired.
"We have certainly seen that in areas where night-time parking (fees) have been introduced, it has proved to be a disincentive (to diners)," he said.
"People who drive in and drive home are not going to be the ones drinking to excess. They just want to enjoy a good meal," he said. "You don't want to provide disincentives for these people."
# By Evonne Barry
# From: Herald Sun
# May 10, 2010
FREE night-time parking in Melbourne's CBD will be a luxury of the past under a revenue-raising plan that has angered motorists and traders.
Diners, revellers, shoppers and sports fans will soon pay $4 to park in metered spaces between 7.30pm and midnight.
The new charge, announced in the City of Melbourne's draft budget yesterday, will raise an extra $1.9 million, pushing the annual parking fee grab to more than $38 million.
Lord Mayor Robert Doyle said that motorists should "factor in" the fee to their expenses, adding that proceeds would pay for safety initiatives.
He noted the $4 charge - applied to 3000 metered spots across the CBD - remained a much cheaper option than the city's 30,000 private parking spaces.
But business owners warned the fees could work against the council's ambitions to shift the focus from alcohol-based evening entertainment.
Restaurant and Catering Australia chief executive John Hart said similar initiatives interstate had backfired.
"We have certainly seen that in areas where night-time parking (fees) have been introduced, it has proved to be a disincentive (to diners)," he said.
"People who drive in and drive home are not going to be the ones drinking to excess. They just want to enjoy a good meal," he said. "You don't want to provide disincentives for these people."
1 comments:
should Malaysia do the same thing? i think its a good idea
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