North Sydney Council sparks driver anger after spending $2m on parking meter changes

A north shore council is facing community pressure to overhaul a new $2m cashless parking meter system, with angry drivers slamming hefty surcharges and claiming it is “confusing”.

A north shore council is facing community pressure to overhaul a new $2m cashless parking meter system, with frustrated motorists slamming hefty surcharges and claiming it is “confusing”.

North Sydney Council has been accused of “price gouging” and adding unnecessary red tape to the task of parking a car following its rollout of “smart” parking meters across the local government area.

The council’s previous parking meters had to be replaced because of the Australia-wide shutdown of the 3G network.

But the rollout of the new “cashless” system, which uses QR codes, has been far from smooth sailing, with many motorists taking to social media to vent their frustration at being unable to decipher the machines.

Others have struggled to even locate parking meters, forcing them to sign up to a council app in order to pay.

A “Touch N Go” parking meter.

There has also been significant concern over an 8.5 per surcharge applied on the app, which residents say is adding to the cost of parking and making it “exorbitant”.

North Sydney councillor James Spenceley is calling for a council report on the rollout, saying the system has been plagued with criticism from many motorists, including older residents.

Councillor James Spenceley.

“A lot of people don’t want to use the app because you have to hand over a lot of personal details and then you have to pay a 8.5 per cent surcharge,” he said.

“There have been complaints of people getting fined because they can’t find parking meters or don’t have the digital capability to use the meters or the app.

“In some areas, you have to walk 300m just to find a parking meter and it’s driving a lot of people mad.

“Parking a car should be as simple as possible, but the current system is adding layers of confusion that aren’t needed.”

NSW Government figures show the council has raked in $2.8m on parking fines since the machines were installed in July this year. This is $700,000 more than in the same period last year.

One of the council’s solar-powered parking machines.

Meanwhile, the council’s 2024/25 budget shows it is expecting to generate $9m from parking and ranger services this financial year.

Council contract registers reveal the council spent $2.1m for private company Orikan Australia Pty to operate the new machines as part of a five-year contract running until 2029.

In a statement, a spokeswoman said the council “acknowledges the frustrations experienced by the community with the new parking meters”.

She added that the council was “actively working to support this transition”.

“Council is implementing measures to mitigate concerns which include installing an additional 30 parking meters across the (local government area), clear signage above Touch N Go meters and reminding customers that signing up to use the PayStay app is optional and not a requirement,” she said.

“(Residents can also) avoid the surcharges by using the parking meters and refraining from paying using the PayStay app and Touch N Go meters.”

According to the council’s website, “Touch N Go” meters are small blue boxes that require users to pay with a smartphone, using either the PayStay app or a guest website.

They differ from the narrower, solar-powered council parking meters, which allow payments to be made directly through the screen.

The council spokeswoman said the 8.5 per cent surcharge was associated with additional services provided by Orikan through its app and meters.