Decision details

Moved by Councillor Chung, seconded by Councillor Forster –

It is resolved that:

(A)        Council note:

(i)          the NSW Government announced a measure in the 2018/19 budget to reduce the cost of living to drivers in NSW by reducing some parking fines by 25 per cent and by introducing a 10 minute "grace period" for some parking offences;

(ii)         in July this year, the penalties for parking violations were reduced from about $110 to $80 in areas the State Government polices, such as the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney Olympic and Parramatta Park;

(iii)        Councils must opt in to the NSW Government initiative to enable the implementation of the fine reduction scheme;

(iv)       from 31 January 2019, a 10 minute "grace period" will be applied to all NSW parking fine authorities, including local councils. There is no option to be excluded;

(v)         the grace period applies to motorists who pay for at least one hour of parking and have a received a physical ticket or coupon; and

(vi)       prescribed parking control signs such as in bus lanes or loading zones will also be excluded to avoid impacts on congestion and safety; and

(B)        the Chief Executive Officer be requested to:

(i)          ask the Director City Services to review the provisions and consider asking rangers to exercise their discretion to allow a 10 minute "grace period" commencing immediately;

(ii)         notify residents, businesses and visitors of the change through the City's communication channels;

(iii)        include the impact of fine reductions for the 52 parking offences (as detailed by the NSW State Government) in the 2019/20 City of Sydney budget considerations; and

(iv)       implement the parking fine reductions from 1 July 2019.

The motion was lost on the following show of hands –

Ayes (3)               Councillors Chung, Forster and Vithoulkas

Noes (7)              The Chair (the Lord Mayor), Councillors Kok, Miller, Phelps, Scott, Scully and Thalis.

Motion lost.

Misrepresentation

During discussion on Item 15.7, Councillor Scott stated that she had been misrepresented in respect to comments made by Councillor Chung and clarified her position accordingly.

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