Northern Beaches Council: Call for ‘ticketless’ parking fine system to be scrapped
The days of ‘brown bombers’ leaving a parking fine docket under the wipers are over on the northern beaches in favour of a ticketless system. But a move is on to bring back the paper.
Manly
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A decision by Northern Beaches Council to scrap paper parking fines and move to a ticketless system is under review.
As of March 4, drivers pinged by council rangers for parking illegally, or overstaying the time limit, are no longer getting a physical docket placed under the window wipers, but are being notified by a “print and post” process.
Details of the offence are recorded electronically by rangers and passed on to Revenue NSW, which then emails or posts a letter, alerting the registered owner of the offending vehicle to the fine.
But the switch has “sparked a storm of concern” from locals, who complained they could inadvertently fail to pay a fine because they did not see the email, or their right to appeal the offence could be affected.
Now Liberal councillor Michael Gencher called on the council to look ito the feasibiluty of reversing he decision and go back to the old-style paper parking fines.
In a Notice of Motion debated at Tuesday night’s council meeting, Cr Gencher argued that the ticketless system had raised questions about its practicality and potential drawbacks.
“One of the primary concerns is the potential for confusion and inconvenience among motorists,” he wrote in support of his motion.
“Unlike the traditional paper docket system, which provided immediate and tangible evidence of a parking violation, the ticketless approach relies on electronic communication, which may be easily overlooked or misplaced by recipients.”
Cr Gencher’s motion, which was passed unanimously, called for council staff to evaluate “the feasibility, possibility and legal implications of reversing the decision of Council to discontinue the ticketless parking system”.
“This ticketless parking system, while possibly innovative, has rightly sparked a wav, or some may say, a storm of concern amongst the community,” Cr Gencher told the meeting.
“This is not just about parking fines, it’s about ensuring our decisions, as council, align with the needs and expectations of those we serve.”
Liberal Cr David Walton agreed there was a “significant backlash from the community” against the decision.
“I think we need to revisit it, look at the risks if the community think we haven’t been open and transparent.”
In a statement released earlier this month the council said it made the move to what it described as a “smarter and more sustainable process” to cut costs to ratepayers.
It said the system was more environmentally friendly and provided drivers with more information about the offence.
The Revenue NSW Print and Post system is used by 38 other councils across NSW and was introduced because authorities were told the paper docket system left some drivers confused by the limited fine information provided.
There was also an issue with the docket being removed, or blown away, from cars. This left drivers with no indication they had been fined until they received a reminder notice, giving them less time to pay, or lodge an appeal.
On March 10, month NSW Finance Minister Courtney Houssos “formally requested” councils to revert to the old ticket system, or at least leave a note saying the driver had been fined.
Northern Beaches Council had already started the ticketless system before the Minister’s call,
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