Global parking price index rates Melbourne as in the top 20 of most expensive cities
Australian parking prices have been revealed to be among the highest in the world, with motorists copping huge hourly charges. See how Melbourne compares to the world’s top cities.
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Melbourne parking charges are among the highest in the world, but lower than those in Sydney and Brisbane, says a new survey.
Melbourne was rated 18th most expensive in the survey of 65 cities conducted by car maintenance outfit Fixter.
US cities New York and Boston were the most expensive parking places while Delhi and Buenos Aires were the cheapest, according to the 2020 Parking Price Index.
Prices per hour were taken for each city at the main airport, a shopping carpark, shopping area street parking, a stadium and near the central town hall.
The index involved ranking each city based on its price deviation from the median.
Melbourne had an average deviation 59.63 per cent higher than the median compared to New York’s 354.75 per cent and Boston’s 282.85 per cent.
Sydney, which was third most expensive city, had an average deviation 210.98 per cent higher, and Brisbane, which came in fifth, posted 173.62 per cent.
One hour on-street parking in Melbourne CBD costs $5.50 compared to $7.20 in Sydney.
Stuart Norman, who heads parking industry lobby Parking Australia, said while the index provided a good global comparison of prices, there were some flaws.
“Specifically, they blend early bird prices and casual parking prices,” he said.
“The overwhelming majority of people who park in Melbourne are early birds. The index doesn’t reflect this very well.”
“The prices for on-street parking were more accurate.”
Mr Norman said Australian parking providers collected $4.5 billion annually, but most of the revenue went to car park owners who had invested big money to buy or build facilities.
“In Melbourne, the Victorian government collects the second most amount of revenue via its congestion levy, which is charged on each parking space whether it is used or not,” he said
“This is approximately $6 per early bird parker, so Melbourne’s car park pricing would be cheaper if the government didn’t charge the congestion levy on each space.”
The tax not only applies to commercial carparks but also to those at Marvel Stadium, Melbourne Arts Centre, Crown Casino, Melbourne Exhibition Centre and MSAC.
Mr Norman said the parking index does suggested there was a close link between property prices and the cost of off-street parking.
In 2018-19, Melbourne Airport raked in $145.5 million in total carparking revenue— down $4.4 million on the previous year.
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