Man's 'outrageous' $129 parking fine after council close car park
One Sydney driver has accused his council of targeting 'innocent commuters'.
An Aussie driver has unleashed over being slapped with an "outrageous" $129 parking fine, which he says is an example of authorities "targeting innocent commuters" who've been left to fighting it out for a spot to park before commuting into work.
Sydney man Ben said that he, along with many other Campbelltown locals, have been forced to park along a fence line outside of a temporary car park installed by council to accomodate drivers while construction is underway for a new multi-deck car park at Campbelltown train station.
He said the temporary facility is regularly full, forcing him and other residents to park on the street along the fencing near the station. The new garage is set to home 500 spaces, with the temporary facility supposed to accomodate as many, though Ben argues that figure is "severely incorrect" and said the whole scenario has become a "nightmare".
Council accused of 'sub-par' car park replacement
"They've advertised that the temporary car park is the same amount of spaces lost during the construction, which is severely incorrect," Ben told 9News, branding the temporary lot "sub-par". "I can only assume they are fining loads of drivers as that space along the fence line is always full of cars parked the same as mine was."
'Confusing signage' adding to drama
Ticket inspectors supplied a photo of a confusing sign near the entrance to the lot to Ben, which he said added to his frustration when he was fined on February 9. In addition, there were no marked bays along the fence line and signage was not clear enough to indicate to drivers they weren't allowed to park there, he argued.
"I mean it's just not fair. It's a temporary gravel parking lot," Ben said. "They've created this mess and now they are targeting innocent commuters fighting to just leave their car somewhere to catch public transport into work."
Council weighs in
According to a spokesperson for Campbelltown City Council, officials even expected that the new car park would "create some disruption". "A temporary 113-space parking lot has been opened adjacent to the existing parking lot in order to offset some of the parking loss," the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said council is "actively monitoring and reviewing the current parking and signage arrangements as well as community feedback, to identify any further improvements that could be made and inform any additional community notification required".
"While this review takes place, vehicles will only be fined where a safety risk to both other vehicles and/or pedestrians is identified," the spokesperson said.
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