NSW government Park’nPay app allows parkers to pay remotely

Finding a public parking spot in Sydney has become so difficult many people simply choose not to drive to their destination.

Finding a public parking spot in Sydney has become so difficult many people simply choose not to drive to their destination at all — or travel there much earlier or later than they would like to leave time to find a spot.

More than 90 per cent of respondents to a damning NSW government survey said it was difficult to find a park, while 83 per cent said they often had to park a long way from their final destination.

Park’nPay user Andy Lee used the NSW Government app to pay for parking while his wife was giving birth in Liverpool hospital. Picture: Toby Zerna

The Better Parking in Greater Sydney survey also found there was a need for more clarity about where and when to park, with 72 per cent of people finding parking signs confusing.

The Berejiklian government is looking at ways to improve parking across Sydney in response to the overwhelming findings, with a Parking Summit set down for later this month.

And the parking issues are not confined to Sydney’s CBD.

Park’nPay user Andy Lee used the NSW Government app to pay for parking while his wife was giving birth in Liverpool hospital. Picture: Toby Zerna

In Parramatta, parking problems are set to be compounded as more public carparks are removed.

“In the space of a few months Parramatta will lose more than 1300 carparking spaces, with the demolition of two major car parks in the CBD, and that is on top of the 400 that have gone for Parramatta Light Rail,” Business Western Sydney executive ­director David Borger said.

“Parramatta is facing some painful growth spurts in the coming years with a huge shortfall in carparking.”

There are calls for better utilisation of parking spaces, including spaces in private facilities.

NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury called for enough parking to meet ­demand but said “technology must also play a vital role” in fixing the problem.

Users of the NSW government’s Park’nPay app can now pay for their parking in advance — or pay after leaving their parking space.

South-west resident Andy Lee used the app to pay for parking at Liverpool Hospital when his wife was giving birth.

He said he “saved so much time” by using the app because he did not have to keep topping up the meter.

“The app ... has turned a 20-minute task into 20 seconds,” he said.