Drivers hit with fewer parking fines
Perth councils are issuing fewer parking fines than a year ago and drivers are successfully appealing more of them, with excuses ranging from car breakdowns to failing to notice a sign.
An analysis of figures from 18 Perth councils shows the number of parking infringements issued fell 6 per cent between 2012-13 and 2013-14 to 193,151 fines.
Over the same period, the number of successful fine appeals rose 9 per cent, though less than 1.5 per cent of the total number of fines issued were appealed successfully.
Some councils bucked the downward trend. The Town of Victoria Park recorded a 167 per cent increase in parking fines issued - up from 5492 in 2012-13 to 14,685 in 2013-14 - after increasing the number of parking inspectors.
The cities of Swan, South Perth, Gosnells and Bayswater also issued more fines.
The City of Perth handed out the most fines in 2013-14 with 108,451 compared with 117,994 the previous year.
It was followed by the City of Vincent, which issued 27,901 fines in 2013-14, down from 32,083 in 2012-13.
The Shire of Mundaring was alone in handing out no parking fines in either 2013-14 or 2012-13.
Chief executive Jonathan Throssell said parking matters in Mundaring related to parking on nature strips without approval.
"Once contact is established, the shire finds vehicle owners undertake directions and park appropriately," he said.
The most common excuses from drivers who appealed against infringements ranged from failing to notice a parking sign, losing track of time and a vehicle breakdown. Other excuses included not having money for the ticket machine or a machine failing to issue a ticket.
Among councils that kept records of the reasons for successful appeals, the most accepted excuses included forgetting to display a permit, or illness.
The proportion of appeals that were successful varied considerably between councils.
In Perth, 6.5 per cent of infringements were appealed in 2013-14 but just 2.8 per cent of those appeals were successful.
By comparison in Vincent, about 17 per cent of infringements were appealed and nearly half of those were successful.
