Warragamba locals forced to park on nature strip call for leniency

It’s the tiny town named after Sydney’s dam where residents are boiling with anger because police have been fining them for parking on the nature strip. But the locals have no choice, with the cause of the issue dating back to the 1940s.

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It’s the tiny town named after Sydney’s dam where residents are boiling with anger because police have used a tidal wave of fines to wash away a decades-old unspoken agreement to break the parking rules.

In Warragamba, streets are so skinny and blocks so small that almost everyone is forced to park on the nature strips.

Yet, despite routinely leaving their patrol cars on the verge near the police station and Warragamba Public School, police have stopped turning a blind eye to motorists parking illegally.

Police officers have been fining residents for parking on the nature strip, yet they are doing the same thing. Picture: Supplied

Postie Angela Rhodes has to use a different method to deliver on narrow streets. Picture: David Swift

Many residents in Warragamba are forced to park on the nature strip as the roads are too tight. Picture: David Swift

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On Christmas Eve Highway Patrol officers dished out at least 17 parking fines, all in the name of the “safety of pedestrians”.

Now furious locals are calling on the authorities to show leniency.

“I’ve been pissed off about this since Christmas,” Sylvia Stehlik, 52, said.

“I have been parking here for 14 years and then out of nowhere I cop a $263 fine for parking outside my house. My son Dylan, who also got a fine, said he saw the cop doing it and he had a smirk on his face. What is their problem?”

The problem began in the 1940s, when the town was thrown up to house workers building the Warragamba Dam. Roads were 4.5m wide or less and homes were sandwiched with tiny front gardens and driveways.

The issue started in the 1940s when the dam was being built.

The old Water Board didn’t even bother to name the streets properly, with roads called First, Second, up to Nineteenth St — a rarity in Australia towns.

The dam was finished in 1960 but many workers stayed, buying their homes from the government.

Almost 60 years later, Wollondilly councillor Judith Hannan said residents are paying the price for poor planning.

“Where are people supposed to legally park?” Ms Hannan, an independent candidate for Wollondilly in the upcoming state election, said.

“We have also never had a report of someone being hit by a car here, let alone a child.

“They could have done a letterbox drop to people. Fining everyone before Christmas is not the solution.”

Ms Hannan said police failed to contact the council about the issue and added the council will have to find a solution.

Police said they were simply acting on “complaints regarding the safety of pedestrians in the area”. Picture: David Swift

The parking situation in Warragamba has been so bad that Roy Clifford is selling his Second St home.

The 57-year-old said there is not enough legal parking for one car, let alone the two he and his partner own.

“Buyers have been saying that they like the house but parking is an issue,” the training consultant said.

“Since everyone started getting fined I have been putting witches hats around the car.”

Mr Clifford said most locals walk on the streets because there are no footpaths.

Motorists also drive slower to protect pedestrians.

NSW Police raised $10.7 million from issuing 44,853 parking fines in 2018-19.

This is a record number of fines and money raised since at least 2012-13.

Last month police on the Central Coast withdrew more than 200 parking fines for similar offences.

Motorists on the Sydney’s north shore have experienced similar problems after sudden crackdowns.

It is often a bone of contention in new suburbs in outer Sydney where roads are not wide enough for cars to park on the tarmac.

Roy Clifford, who has been forced to sell his home, puts witches hats around the car in hopes of avoiding a fine. Picture: David Swift.

But a NSW Police spokeswoman remained unmoved on the Warramgamba fines, saying they were simply acting on “complaints regarding the safety of pedestrians in the local area”.

“With 57 pedestrian-related fatalities in the last 12 months, police will continue to respond to road safety concerns and take appropriate action for the benefit of all road users,” she said.

A Department of Education spokesman said while Warragamba Public School has told police about unsafe parking around the immediate vicinity of their school, “this communication did not include parking on nature strips”.

In January the state government put pressure on local councils to reduce the size of parking fines.

A Revenue NSW spokeswoman refused to respond to requests to withdraw the fines when contacted by The Sunday Telegraph.

Ms Hannan’s pleas for leniency from the government agency were also ignored.

Originally published as Warragamba locals forced to park on nature strip call for leniency