Paid parking across Canberra is not a new thing. Most parking lots have been user pays for some time now with the Parliamentary Triangle having paid parking introduced on October 1 this year. Parliament House is probably the only government institution to still have free parking available. There’s a real possibility that this is all about to change.
Paid parking in the public car parks at Parliament House (basement at the front of the building and also spots on either side of Federation Mall) will come to effect in November. Paid parking for building occupants in the four private car parks (House of Representatives, Senate, Ministerial outdoor and Ministerial underground) is still under review but an outcome is expected before the end of the year.
I suspect that if paid parking is introduced for the private car parks there will be an outcry, similar to the outcry we saw when paid parking was introduced in the Parliamentary Triangle. I think the outcry will come not from political staff because the majority of them are not Canberra based anyway, but from the other building occupants that don’t earn the same wages as some highly paid public servants and political staff do. People like the cleaners, the childcare centre workers, the staff at the cafes, the attendants in the House of Representatives and the Senate, the building maintenance staff, the staff at Australia Post, the security guards, the gardeners. The list could go on and on.
I’m interested to know if those who have already had paid parking implemented at their workplace changed their lifestyle because of it, choosing to ride the bus or cycle to work, or if most people just decided to begrudgingly keep driving to work and copping the parking fee each day. Has the number of people carpooling increased perhaps?
For those readers who don’t have paid parking at their work; if it was implemented tomorrow, would you start finding alternative ways to get to and from work or would you suck it up and pay the parking fee?
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What’s Your opinion?
Parking on the Hill – time to cough up the cash
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Nightshade said :
Technically, if you were to follow this plan and ride to Barton from Yarralumla, you would technically be a “Lake User” by cycling along the shared path. It’s no different to someone who walks the full lake loop, which would take all day. Still a “Lake User”, parking there and passing through the parks.
Personally I’m happy that you’re considering a cycling mode-share. That 20 minutes on the bike will also save you 20 minutes cardio at the gym.
Just how busy are the lake car parks during the week anyway?
Kellamity said :
Why are weekday users of the lake more worthy of free parking than people going to work?
Actually there is one other government institution that still has free parking…
ACT public schools.
One time we thought someone was exploiting the spots to park and ride to some other workplace for the day. Turns out it was the OH of one of the teachers. Oops.
Great! The local residents and the lake users won’t mind that at all. They are going to have to put those 3h parking signs everywhere. Too bad if you have friends visiting or want to go on a bike ride/lake adventure that’s going to take longer than that.
gazket said :
Yeah because the revenue from pay parking is really helping the countries bottom line! Ridiculous statement to make. I could say if the liberals didn’t get rid of the carbon tax we’d be better off also. Or if the liberals allowed labor to cut the salary sacrificing of cars we be better off also. It takes two to tango. If the best you can do is blame the other party because you can’t get your extreme idealogical views through parliament, then you don’t deserve to be in government. After all its the reasonable moderate, swing voters in the middle that decide elections.
If Labor didn’t bankrupt the country the feds wouldn’t need your parking money. everyone has to pitch in it’s the Labor way..
Evilomlap said :
Think of it as a shuttle (bus).
Great look, I think!