City parking a fine art Ian Royall Herald Sun March 25, 2008 12:00am
LONSDALE St is Melbourne's hotspot for parking fines, raking in $2.9 million for the city council last year.
Motorists were also likely to be slugged with fines for parking breaches in Queen and Collins streets.
Last year Town Hall collected $35.6 million in parking fines -- about $97,800 a day.
New figures show 43,187 parking infringements were issued on the 1.85km-long Lonsdale St last year. That's 118 every day.
The most common breaches were for over-staying in a parking zone, not having a valid ticket and stopping in a loading zone.
Last year 3830 motorists were nabbed for stopping in a disabled parking spot.
The average fine was $67.
About 7 per cent -- or 33,270 -- of all fines issued last year were withdrawn.
Reasons for cancelling tickets were because of faulty meters, mistakes or the council failing to deal with disputes in time.
The chairman of the council's finance and governance committee, Cr Brian Shanahan, said parking fines were a necessary evil.
Policing parking restrictions was to guarantee traffic flow and free up access.
"We have to ensure that people obey the rules," Cr Shanahan said.
Parking fees produce more than $32 million a year in revenue for the council.
That figure compares with the rates revenue of about $139 million a year.
The council is reviewing its parking rules for the CBD.
A draft report has been approved for release for public comment.
Final recommendations are expected by September.
The preliminary report found on-street occupancy rates for short-term parking were as high as 95 per cent, indicating there was a need for more short-term spots.
"We are reviewing parking from time to time to ensure we get maximum efficiency and maximum benefits for ratepayers," Cr Shanahan.
There are more than 63,000 parking spaces in the CBD.