Council hits back as Bondi woman blasts $283 fine for parking in her driveway

An irate woman has vented after copping a fine for parking in the driveway of her own Sydney residence, where she says she always leaves her Audi when returning home.

However the local council defended the costly fine to Yahoo News Australia, claiming they were forced to act upon a string of complaints from other residents about the annoying transgression.

Complaining on Facebook, the Bondi local said she'd "never had a problem" with where she parks until now and questioned whether the $283 infringement was fair. In an accompanying photo, the woman's car can be seen partially obstructing a footpath that crosses through the driveway outside her home.

"Has there been a recent change in parking on Warners Avenue? I’ve never had a problem until this ticket today," she posted alongside an apparent photo of her offence and the fine. "I park in my driveway, leaving ample room for a double pram as my car doesn’t fit in the garage," she explained.

Her post received a mixed response from other residents with some noting she's "clearly" blocking the footpath. "Good on 'em. I hate walking down that street with a pram," one said. "Unfortunately the law is you can’t block the sidewalk anywhere, even at your own place," another chimed in.

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Some online pointed out it's "always been the rule" that you can't park in such a way, suggesting she "must have been lucky in the past" to have avoided a fine until now. But some clearly felt the parking fine was unreasonable given there was enough room to get by the car.

Council says parking act no longer tolerated

Parking in this particular street has proven problematic in the past with the Waverly council regularly communicating with residents about obstructing footpaths with their cars, a spokesperson told Yahoo News Australia. They confirmed that it's "always been a fineable offence under the Australian road rules" but the council has been somewhat lenient – until now.

"Council has previously accepted this practice as long as vehicles are not encroaching/obstructing the footpath," the council spokesperson said. "Due to recent ongoing high volume of complaints from residents and NSW Fire and Rescue, action is being taken," they said.

Yahoo was told the council has received numerous complaints from residents about not being able to safely use the footpath in Warners Avenue, as well as complaints from parents with young children unable to push a pram safely in the area. NSW Fire and Rescue also questioned the safety of the frequent obstructions saying they were not able to pass through Warners Avenue with a Fire Appliance needed to respond to an emergency.

"Council letterboxed residents earlier this year as a courtesy educational reminder and advance notification that parking officers will shortly be visiting the street to enforce parking legislation," the council spokesperson confirmed.

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