Westfield Doncaster cuts free parking to two hours as shops re-open following COVID-19
UPDATE: Westfield is refusing to say why it has cut free parking time at its flagship Melbourne shopping centre in the lead-up to Christmas.
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One of Melbourne’s biggest shopping centres has cut its free parking time limit on the eve of Christmas - and won’t say why they’ve made the change.
Westfield Doncaster, which recently opened a $30 million rooftop dining precinct, has slashed shoppers’ free parking time limit by an hour, from three hours to two.
Visitors will now have to fork out up to $5 to stay for a third hour.
Eagle-eyed shopper Rob, of Doncaster, contacted the Herald Sun noticing the change.
“Just when restrictions have eased, Westfield in its wisdom has reduced free parking from three hours to two. Why?”
Doncaster is one of three Westfield centres in Victoria with paid parking, with the others being Southland and Geelong, whose arrangements appear unchanged.
Centre operator Scentre Group stated the changes on Westfield Doncaster’s website.
“As restrictions ease and as we return to full operation, we have resumed controlled parking at Westfield Doncaster to ensure that our customers can access parking as quickly and easily as possible when they visit,” the website reads.
A Scentre Group spokeman said 90 per cent of visitors to the centre completed their visit within two hours, and most would still do so.
But the spokeman did not say why the free parking period had been reduced.
The spokesman said the group’s free Westfield Plus loyalty program had been introduced to “help customers get the most out of every visit to our centre”.
It includes up to four hours free parking per visit if visitors download an app and submit their car registration number.
“Westfield Plus provides access to a number of member-only benefits including extended free parking, special offers and more,” the spokesman said.
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