Pay parking opens up in the Parliamentary Triangle

c_c™ said :

Brilliant sound bite on ABC News tonight from a public servant:

“$11 a day, my goodness it won’t be worth working”

Not sure if joking or serious.
Keep in mind even an APS 2 earns $136 a day so perhaps overstating it a bit.

Haha yeah, I saw that woman on the 7pm ABC News. She was standing in the DFAT carpark. Nevermind that they are one of the highest paid agencies in the APS…

JC said :

brining in more workers to compete for less space.

With 12000 jobs slated to be axed, they have the solution to that part of the problem…

Martlark said :

ABS in Belconnen has just announced that their staff car park will become paid parking. Partially to escape paying FBT. It’s one of the last departments in Belconnen to offer it.

I thought that was because the ABS didn’t own the carpark, so they couldn’t charge people for something they didn’t own?

Either way the agencies have a choice of paying $5 a day in FBT or making the employees pay $10+ in parking, and also on the top of that have to pay for machines and extra’s to be installed to collect the parking fee’s.

The FBT they collect will go straight back to the government anyway and be available to give back to the departments.. The whole issue of FBT is just wrong, its the government paying itself a tax, which they’re now passing onto the employees as a pay cut.

JC said :

screaming banshee said :

JC said :

That said paid parking is stupid in this area. As for those that want equity, how about we now start charging paid parking in Gungahlin, Kippax, Erindale, Coolaman Court, Fyshwick, Mitchell etc. That way every worker in the town is treated equally!

Most Fyshwick businesses own/lease their own parking, so the businesses are covering the cost of off-street parking and providing it for their customers at no charge.

Parking has been ridiculous in the triangle for far too long. How are visitors who drive supposed to visit the national attractions if every Tom dick and Sally fills the car parks at 8am? I wish we didn’t have to wait until next year.

Looks like you have fallen hook line and sinker into that old chestnut. Finding parking to visit the attractions is NOT the issue and plenty can be had for our fine visitors.

Finding all day parking for all the workers IS due to the fact they have built new buildings on what were once car parks reducing space for existing workers and brining in more workers to compete for less space.

Now I don’t know if you’re serious you nutbag you, in case you are the I can assure you visiting questacon or the library is a nightmare

screaming banshee said :

JC said :

That said paid parking is stupid in this area. As for those that want equity, how about we now start charging paid parking in Gungahlin, Kippax, Erindale, Coolaman Court, Fyshwick, Mitchell etc. That way every worker in the town is treated equally!

Most Fyshwick businesses own/lease their own parking, so the businesses are covering the cost of off-street parking and providing it for their customers at no charge.

Parking has been ridiculous in the triangle for far too long. How are visitors who drive supposed to visit the national attractions if every Tom dick and Sally fills the car parks at 8am? I wish we didn’t have to wait until next year.

I was speaking tongue in cheek in case you didn’t realise. Maybe what I should have said is all schools should have paid parking too, for equity reasons you know.

screaming banshee said :

JC said :

That said paid parking is stupid in this area. As for those that want equity, how about we now start charging paid parking in Gungahlin, Kippax, Erindale, Coolaman Court, Fyshwick, Mitchell etc. That way every worker in the town is treated equally!

Most Fyshwick businesses own/lease their own parking, so the businesses are covering the cost of off-street parking and providing it for their customers at no charge.

Parking has been ridiculous in the triangle for far too long. How are visitors who drive supposed to visit the national attractions if every Tom dick and Sally fills the car parks at 8am? I wish we didn’t have to wait until next year.

Looks like you have fallen hook line and sinker into that old chestnut. Finding parking to visit the attractions is NOT the issue and plenty can be had for our fine visitors.

Finding all day parking for all the workers IS due to the fact they have built new buildings on what were once car parks reducing space for existing workers and brining in more workers to compete for less space.

pink little birdie said :

apparently even if departments have limited free parking they are all now looking to make it pay parking to save jobs… so they don’t have to pay fbt on it

Actually as there is already a paid carpark in Barton all the departments around are already liable for FBT on their freely provided carparks. So this really changes nothing in that regard.

JC said :

That said paid parking is stupid in this area. As for those that want equity, how about we now start charging paid parking in Gungahlin, Kippax, Erindale, Coolaman Court, Fyshwick, Mitchell etc. That way every worker in the town is treated equally!

Most Fyshwick businesses own/lease their own parking, so the businesses are covering the cost of off-street parking and providing it for their customers at no charge.

Parking has been ridiculous in the triangle for far too long. How are visitors who drive supposed to visit the national attractions if every Tom dick and Sally fills the car parks at 8am? I wish we didn’t have to wait until next year.

ABS in Belconnen has just announced that their staff car park will become paid parking. Partially to escape paying FBT. It’s one of the last departments in Belconnen to offer it.

The prepaid parking tags are very easy to duplicate, usualy in 3 month intervals so as to not arouse suspicion..

Only suckers pay for parking.

apparently even if departments have limited free parking they are all now looking to make it pay parking to save jobs… so they don’t have to pay fbt on it

JC said :

MMR said :

Defence pays for parking costs for military and APS staff who work at Fairbairn and BP – so those staff unfortunate enough to work at Russell will be effectively taking a pay cut compared to their peers.

The reverse could be true that this will be the end of that ‘perk’ so all will be equal.

I’m thinking this will end, when pay parking is in Russell. It was only done so people would go work in those buildings and not feel like they are worse off than other members of Defence in Russell. So now the airport will probably hike the fees to $11 a day too 😉

HiddenDragon said :

The true answer to that question, and this revenue grab by the Feds, both serve to remind us that self- government for the ACT was more about money than it was about representative democracy.

You are right. And after 20 + years I would like to see if it has actually saved them any money at all.

Pork Hunt said :

Can someone in the know please explain why you still have the NCA? Why doesn’t all of the ACT come under the ACT Gov jurisdiction?

Because if the ACT gubmint owned it it’d be full of blocks of flats.

Valleyboy said :

This has helped to firm up my retirement plans. I’ve been working at Russell for many years, and I was thinking of retiring sometime around the middle of next year, at a logical time when I’d seen swansong projects through for things that I’m the local knowledge silo for and that my workmates haven’t wanted to touch.

Now I know I’ll be going by June 30 next year, projects finished or not. On my marginal tax rate, pay parking would be the equivalent of a gross pay cut of nearly $80 a week. For what — for the privilege of coming to work, in a location that is a public transport backwater, not a hub; where there are no retail or other amenities; and where public servants aren’t competing for parking with anybody else (eg, competing for parking with tourists at a tourist attraction).

For the huge increase in commuting time that it would take to travel using buses from my home in the arse-end of Tuggeranong, I probably would’ve been no worse off for travelling times had I stayed in my home city instead of relocating to Canberra.

F**k all that. I feel fortunate that it will be convenient for me to walk away just before the revenue-raising rip-off commences. I could imagine that transfers to Campbell Park might become sought after by Defence personnel at Russell.

On the positive side for other public servants in Canberra, apparently this move is going to help Joe find his 12,000 job cuts, with people actually willing to quit/retire over having to pay for parking? No wonder the rest of Aus thinks Canberra is full of precious public servants…. I hope no interstate people are reading this thread! Hahaha!

I am not too sure how buses in the triangle can be improved really. For me the killer is not buses in the triangle (this was fixed a few timetables ago) but the time the bus takes to get to the triangle even on the express buses. Once in the triangle you have the 200 serving Barton every 15 minutes, for those down in Parkes there is of course a bus every 5 minutes or so along Commonwealth Ave and the 200 on Kings Ave and of course there are a heap of other buses too including the peak hour expresses. Yes these do require a little walk for some, but not that far!

When I do get the bus it is usually when the wife drives to Civic and I get it from there and they are far from over crowded.

That said paid parking is stupid in this area. As for those that want equity, how about we now start charging paid parking in Gungahlin, Kippax, Erindale, Coolaman Court, Fyshwick, Mitchell etc. That way every worker in the town is treated equally!

MMR said :

Defence pays for parking costs for military and APS staff who work at Fairbairn and BP – so those staff unfortunate enough to work at Russell will be effectively taking a pay cut compared to their peers.

The reverse could be true that this will be the end of that ‘perk’ so all will be equal.

As a commuter cyclist I estimate my weekly travel costs will remain somewhere close to zero.

Pork Hunt said :

Can someone in the know please explain why you still have the NCA? Why doesn’t all of the ACT come under the ACT Gov jurisdiction?

The true answer to that question, and this revenue grab by the Feds, both serve to remind us that self- government for the ACT was more about money than it was about representative democracy.

So as someone who’s worked in the City for the past 12 years, paying at least $12 a day when I do drive (and I try to keep that to a minimum), I don’t have a whole lot of sympathy for everyone who’s been enjoying free parking. I’ve probably spent $20k on parking that you’ve been able to spend up until now, so forgive me if I’m viewing this as a sensible move.

On the other hand, paid parking in the triangle will put more pressure on the bus service – and I’m sure none of the money the Commonwealth raises from paid parking will find its way back to ACTION.

I’m also sure that once the free parking on the other side of the lake has gone, that those people who work in the city, but park in the triangle, will be looking for other free parking in other areas close to the city. I’ve been amazed at the extent that some of my work colleagues will go to in avoiding parking fees – from walking into the city from the museum, to buying a scooter to get them from free parking. This includes people on $130/hr contracts, who’ll spend 10 or 20 minutes avoiding paid parking, and actually lose more in wages than what a days parking would have cost.

When it comes to paying for parking, people can be batshit insane. Good luck to anyone living north of the lake – your streets may be about to get a whole lot busier.

Valleyboy said :

This has helped to firm up my retirement plans. I’ve been working at Russell for many years, and I was thinking of retiring sometime around the middle of next year, at a logical time when I’d seen swansong projects through for things that I’m the local knowledge silo for and that my workmates haven’t wanted to touch.

Now I know I’ll be going by June 30 next year, projects finished or not. On my marginal tax rate, pay parking would be the equivalent of a gross pay cut of nearly $80 a week. For what — for the privilege of coming to work, in a location that is a public transport backwater, not a hub; where there are no retail or other amenities; and where public servants aren’t competing for parking with anybody else (eg, competing for parking with tourists at a tourist attraction).

For the huge increase in commuting time that it would take to travel using buses from my home in the arse-end of Tuggeranong, I probably would’ve been no worse off for travelling times had I stayed in my home city instead of relocating to Canberra.

F**k all that. I feel fortunate that it will be convenient for me to walk away just before the revenue-raising rip-off commences. I could imagine that transfers to Campbell Park might become sought after by Defence personnel at Russell.

Honestly, how is this area a public transport backwater? Don’t buses go along commonwealth ave every 10-15 mins?
What’s wrong with hopping on one and then walking for five minutes?

Although a loop bus would be a great idea.

It is a great idea. People working at Russell might actually be able to get a park now. And visitors to the gallery.

But the ACT should get the money – what reason is there for the NCA to rake it in. they are the ones who keep creating this ridiculous parking situation – eg turning the gravel carpark behind the NLA into lawn to be more photogenic, meaning that less people can actually go there.

This is like a big tax on Canberra if the fed gov get the money.

So the cardigan wearers in the Centrals are now going to be treated the same as workers in the rest of town. So what, it was inevitable really. Might provide the impetus to extend the coming light rail line down that way. Toot toot!

The government pays the workers for working.

The workers need to park somewhere, so will now pay the government for parking.

Having paid parking itself costs money to run.

So the government wants to pay money to people, then also paying others to go collect some of that same money back, it makes as much sense as having government employee’s taxed.

We could save lots of money not collecting taxes from people who are paid with taxes. (The employees earning less instead and not having to waste the ATO time taxing the tax dollars).

MMR said :

Well that’s $2640 per year of my money that won’t be spent in the local shops

Well I guess you could always go and get a job in a department that has bountiful free parking. Oh … wait …

Pork Hunt said :

Primal said :

Pork Hunt said :

Can someone in the know please explain why you still have the NCA? Why doesn’t all of the ACT come under the ACT Gov jurisdiction?

Because the big shiny Federal Government doesn’t want the puny little ACT Govt to have it by the short-and-curlies when it comes to matters of what happens in the Triangle.

Now when are we getting that Barton Bus Station I keep reading about? Some time around July 2014 would be useful…

So is the NCA in the constitution or is it an invention due to self government?

If only there were a website that explained the history of the NCA… 😉

http://www.nationalcapital.gov.au/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=136&Itemid=171

This has helped to firm up my retirement plans. I’ve been working at Russell for many years, and I was thinking of retiring sometime around the middle of next year, at a logical time when I’d seen swansong projects through for things that I’m the local knowledge silo for and that my workmates haven’t wanted to touch.

Now I know I’ll be going by June 30 next year, projects finished or not. On my marginal tax rate, pay parking would be the equivalent of a gross pay cut of nearly $80 a week. For what — for the privilege of coming to work, in a location that is a public transport backwater, not a hub; where there are no retail or other amenities; and where public servants aren’t competing for parking with anybody else (eg, competing for parking with tourists at a tourist attraction).

For the huge increase in commuting time that it would take to travel using buses from my home in the arse-end of Tuggeranong, I probably would’ve been no worse off for travelling times had I stayed in my home city instead of relocating to Canberra.

F**k all that. I feel fortunate that it will be convenient for me to walk away just before the revenue-raising rip-off commences. I could imagine that transfers to Campbell Park might become sought after by Defence personnel at Russell.

The massive open air carpark between Kings Ave and John Gorton Building would be a great spot for a large underground/aboveground pay carpark. Sure we’d have to kill off a few old trees, but it could be built in stages and would easily service the Triangle and Barton.
Would probably be too much like forward thinking through….

And i must say i really love the pay carpark that’s already in Barton. I get a park there every time!

Well this is going to decrease productivity in my team.

Now I am going to have to roster someone every day to stand in the car park and send a bulk SMS to us all when the Parking Inspectors turn up, so we can rush down and pay the minimum amount until they leave.

Or if there is free one hour tourist parking, I just roster a person to stand down there and continually move our cars around. Actually that will require rostering two people to be effective.

Meanwhile we have the greens and labor MLAs extolling our crappy public transport system when I guarantee you none of them regularly catches a bus.

MMR said :

Well that’s $2640 per year of my money that won’t be spent in the local shops

Yep it will basically be a transfer of wealth from Canberra to Tasmania etc.. Between that and the coming public service cuts things are really looking up for the Canberra economy.

bigfeet said :

But will you still be able to pitch tents, dump shipping containers and light fires with impunity if you call yourself an ’embassy’?

Will this signal the end of unquestioned free parking in the Rose Gardens for Tent Embassy folk?

Note that I took an international visitor to the tent embassy recently, and he went off to chat to one of the Indigenous folk. First tent: occupied by non-Indigenous Josh. I’d say that if you don’t have to be indigenous to pitch a permanent tent there, you don’t have to be indigenous to park there.

Parking in Woden improved heaps when it went to $8 and $9 has been icing. Before it was getting impossible to get a park if I was running too late to cycle in, or as has been mentioned here need to drop children off first.
Must be hell needing to drop the kids off before parking in the triangle ATM.

MMR said :

Well that’s $2640 per year of my money that won’t be spent in the local shops

Use that $2640 to buy a motorcycle. You’ll get free parking and save petrol.

MMR said :

Well that’s $2640 per year of my money that won’t be spent in the local shops

Welcome to the real world.

steveu said :

I suspect those who currently are allocated a park by their agency will incur a fbt liability for their department, which will have to be absorbed by the department or passed on to the employee.

I can confirm this. Working in the triangle we are offered parking spaces appointed to our building however we are charged a FBT which is almost $3000 per year out of our salary. This forces most people to use free parking around the area. Taking this away is going to leave a lot of people disgruntled.
As previously stated, the problem really lies with more and more parking being taken away. They build office building after office building and reduce the parking. If it’s their way of getting us to use public transport, they first need to make the public transport usable.
Pay parking is not going to solve anything.

Brilliant sound bite on ABC News tonight from a public servant:

“$11 a day, my goodness it won’t be worth working”

Not sure if joking or serious.
Keep in mind even an APS 2 earns $136 a day so perhaps overstating it a bit.

Primal said :

Now when are we getting that Barton Bus Station I keep reading about? Some time around July 2014 would be useful…

Not sure about that, but check:
http://www.action.act.gov.au/timetables_and_maps/parliamentary-zone-guide

MMR said :

Well that’s $2640 per year of my money that won’t be spent in the local shops

There aren’t any local shops in the triangle….!

Defence pays for parking costs for military and APS staff who work at Fairbairn and BP – so those staff unfortunate enough to work at Russell will be effectively taking a pay cut compared to their peers.

Primal said :

Now when are we getting that Barton Bus Station I keep reading about? Some time around July 2014 would be useful…

A tender had gone out recently for its construction.

For those who don’t like catching a bus from their suburb to work. You can always drive to the Park & Ride locations & take the bus from there. These locations can be found at http://www.transport.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/395486/Park_and_Ride_map.pdf all you have to do is show you actually use your MyWay card.

Also when TAMS (eventually) release ACTION Buses Network 13/14 for public comment. People could make suggestions for some Xpresso’s to go through Parkes rather then Russell.

Well that’s $2640 per year of my money that won’t be spent in the local shops

It has been pretty weird to have free parking all this time; where else would you see that.

Primal said :

Pork Hunt said :

Can someone in the know please explain why you still have the NCA? Why doesn’t all of the ACT come under the ACT Gov jurisdiction?

Because the big shiny Federal Government doesn’t want the puny little ACT Govt to have it by the short-and-curlies when it comes to matters of what happens in the Triangle.

Now when are we getting that Barton Bus Station I keep reading about? Some time around July 2014 would be useful…

So is the NCA in the constitution or is it an invention due to self government?

But will you still be able to pitch tents, dump shipping containers and light fires with impunity if you call yourself an ’embassy’?

Pork Hunt said :

Can someone in the know please explain why you still have the NCA? Why doesn’t all of the ACT come under the ACT Gov jurisdiction?

Because the big shiny Federal Government doesn’t want the puny little ACT Govt to have it by the short-and-curlies when it comes to matters of what happens in the Triangle.

Now when are we getting that Barton Bus Station I keep reading about? Some time around July 2014 would be useful…

Can someone in the know please explain why you still have the NCA? Why doesn’t all of the ACT come under the ACT Gov jurisdiction?

I suspect those who currently are allocated a park by their agency will incur a fbt liability for their department, which will have to be absorbed by the department or passed on to the employee.

I’d think that limiting all of the pay-parking spots to a 4-hr limit would completely end Civic workers from parking in the triangle. Who’d really want to waste a half-hour at lunch to come and get a new ticket?

But for workers/visitors in the triangle, it would be relatively easy.

It may well stop the people parking in the Parliamentary Triangle who then either walk, ride or catch the bus the rest of the way to work in Civic.

Morgan said :

This will solve the parking shortage in those areas won’t it?

I think that putting pay parking at the National Museum might be unnecessary as its a bit far away for commuters to park. Otherwise it will make it much easier to find somewhere to park in the triangle, its funny that the Commonwealth will be able to install credit card machines faster than the ACT Government

The National Museum does need to be included. I do some contracting there and always try to make sure I’m going there at the start of the day rather than part way through. When I’ve been on weekdays with visitors it’s been very hard to get a park.

Arriving there in the morning, the car park fills from two directions. The spaces that are marked as reserved for staff in the early part of the day, plus the spaces nearest the Museum fill, presumably with bona fide staff and volunteers. Meanwhile, the end nearest the entrance is filling up. People leaving those vehicles generally head away from the Museum. Some of them probably are doing the shorter walk onto the ANU campus, but there are many who switch footwear to joggers, change into running gear or pull a bike out of the vehicle; I’m sure these are headed for Civic where they would otherwise have to pay.

Policing the posted four hour limit and identifying staff cars and their eligibility to park in staff places would also work, but I have no qualms about paying for using spaces when I need to, there or anywhere else in the Triangle.

I’m getting a bit fed up of hearing Gary Humphries sound bite saying that public servants are being slugged another $2600 a year for doing their jobs. Well woo hoo Gary. Come and work in the city where the majority have been slugged for parking since the day dot. It’s about time so get used to it.

Assuming that the NCA will not install aged coin guzzling machines. They could look at a post-parking payment system that will allow cultural institutions to validate parking tickets for their visitors making them free. I’m sure it could work. Or at least a two hours free system.

johnboy said :

During my brief stint in Barton I had a bus running literally door to door.

I still drove because the parking was free.

$10 a day would have made allll the difference. Hope they’ve got the extra capacity though.

The intersection of National Circuit and Kings Avenue already looks like a bus interchange.

Yep, the triangle seems well set out for a bus loop. Plus one side is on the main bus route between Woden and civic. Could be worse! Besides, apparently ~50% of the adult population could do with a bit more exercise, so a ten min stroll shouldn’t hurt! Maybe we’re all getting a bit precious nowadays?

Interesting that the DFAT staff car park is excluded,while all the surrounding car parks are going to start charging. Suspect it’s something to do with the ownership of the land, but this is going to create a bit of an inequity between departments…

This is what happens when the NCA artificially increases the demand for parking by reducing what is available.

During my brief stint in Barton I had a bus running literally door to door.

I still drove because the parking was free.

$10 a day would have made allll the difference. Hope they’ve got the extra capacity though.

The intersection of National Circuit and Kings Avenue already looks like a bus interchange.

So let’s hope the Feds do a better job than the local mob. Given that ACT government system is not too be used, let’s hope that there are electronic payment means, including ad hoc payments by CC for tourists, smart phone /account based systems for regulars etc… The days of carrying more coinage than is definable as legal tender needs to stop.

From the NCA website:

Pay parking in these areas will commence on 1 July 2014 to assist with ongoing parking management on National Land.The introduction of pay parking aims to prioritise spaces for visitors to the National Institutions.

Not coming in this year as OP suggested
Even with the impending election there’s plenty of time to have it protested, watered-down, discussed, focus grouped and forgotten.

Good to see volunteers won’t be slugged. I do hope though the fees will apply to the senior management who presently have Commonwealth reserved spaces. I.e. NCA chief and his minions should have to pay up.

The NMA battles with ANU staff and students, rather than public servants.

I work in the triangle and have enjoyed the perks of the free parking. However, I also work in a cultural instutition and our visitors struggle to find a park and our visitation suffers. So I welcome pay parking but hope a few more buses are added. I will happily take the bus, but the ones which service me only go at what I feel are very odd times, and too early for me to leave work at the end of the day.

Pretty sure the date in the link is 1 July 2014, not 2013?

This will solve the parking shortage in those areas won’t it?

I think that putting pay parking at the National Museum might be unnecessary as its a bit far away for commuters to park. Otherwise it will make it much easier to find somewhere to park in the triangle, its funny that the Commonwealth will be able to install credit card machines faster than the ACT Government

Cost of bicycle parking rises by 300%.