Brisbane City Council's free street parking and half-price car park deal lifted CBD foot traffic, but disability advocates say accessible bays became harder to reach.
In February 2022 Brisbane City Council made metered street parking in the CBD free and halved fees at its King George Square and Wickham Terrace car parks, in a bid to bring workers and shoppers back into the city. The offer ran until 28 February.
Foot traffic in the Queen Street Mall rose by 8 per cent in the first week after the scheme started on 9 February. The program came at a cost: the council was forgoing about $500,000 a week in parking revenue.
Council infrastructure chair Andrew Wines said the aim was for people to spend the money they saved on parking at local businesses.
The scheme was not welcomed by everyone. Disability advocates said changes to CBD parking had left accessible bays less convenient. Of 10 disability spaces in the area, one near the City Botanic Gardens was removed and eight were relocated from the James Street area to Eagle Street, while some time limits dropped from four hours to two. Advocates warned that moving bays further from the Queen Street Mall made trips harder for wheelchair users because of the steeper streets.
Temporary discounts can shift where people park, so anyone renting a CBD car space long term should weigh reliable access and location, not just the headline price.
Photo: John Robert McPherson / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Driveway into the King George Square car park, Adelaide Street, Brisbane.