As children head back to school this week, Dubbo Regional Council (DRC) Parking Officers are targeting illegal parking, particularly on nature strips, across footpaths and parking against the flow of traffic.
DRC Manager Environmental Compliance Narelle Sargent said if someone is parked illegally in a manner that is unsafe, action will be taken to ensure the safety of our community, especially children.
“Parking across driveways and footpaths can cause a number of potential hazards such as blocking access for emergency vehicles and creating access issues for pedestrians, particularly those with mobility issues,” said Mrs Sargent. “Nature strips are also kept clear for good reason, including allowing foot traffic to pass through, and for neighbouring or passing traffic to have visibility when accessing driveways or intersections.”
The penalties set and legislated by the NSW Government for illegal parking include:
- $275.00 for not parking in the direction of travel
- $275.00 for stop on path/nature strip in built-up area
- $275.00 for stop on/across driveway/other access to and from land
- $352.00 (plus two demerit points) for stop in bus zones (school zone)
Unless sign posted otherwise, the Australian Road Rule Part 1 of section 197, applicable to this offence states:
A driver must not stop on a bicycle path, footpath, shared path or driving strip or nature strip adjacent to a length of road in a built up area, unless the driver stops at a place on a length of road, or in an area, to which a parking control sign applies and the driver is permitted to stop at that place under the Australian Road Rules; or the driver is permitted to stop under another law of this jurisdiction.
Under the law, NSW Police and Parking Officers enforce parking compliance and issue infringements for parking offences. NSW Police and Parking Officers also patrol school zones, and parking around school zones – areas where children can be put at increased risk of serious injury due to road users not obeying the rules.
“Parking Officers can issue infringements at their discretion and they try to reach out to the driver in the first instance but unfortunately due to the increased volume of people breaking the rules, they have had no choice but to issue penalties,” said Mrs Sargent. “Our Parking Officers are working hard to keep our areas accessible and safe and we need everyone to be compliant and play their part.”
Anyone who believes they had been unfairly fined can request a review of the penalty through Revenue NSW.
Information is provided on the infringement notice.
