We're in a damn fine mess now

PARKING fine situation has reached laughable stages as residents fined for parking in their own driveways now.

FINES: Time to stop them isn't it? Picture: Brett Wortman

OPINION:

THIS parking fine situation has gotten absolutely ridiculous.

Fining people for parking in their own driveways now.

Unreal.

And apparently the laws are protecting us, because if the nature strip laws were tweaked then literally anybody could park in our driveways.

That seems a bit of a stretch, especially when you're holding a $94 fine in your hand.

It'd be a pretty crook neighbour and very ignorant fool to go and park in front of a stranger's property without consent, blocking access.

Surely the law could be tweaked in a way that the private property boundary starts from the beginning of the driveway for the designated driveway section, and from in line with the letterbox for other areas, if the fear is of nature strips becoming carparks.

Even then, I don't see why you shouldn't be able to park on a nature strip if you're expected to maintain it.

The only rules should be that you can't block a footpath or emergency service access point (for example fire hydrants, electrical ports etc).

Sure, it's a pain in the bum when pushing a pram and someone's car is covering the footpath, probably worthy of a fine, but it's not world-ending.

On a busy road, sure, it's an added element of risk that you don't like to take, but you deal with it and hope the driver is a little more considerate next time.

Blocking of a footpath is a bit different to walking on the other side of the road, with no footpath, where cars may be parked in the way.

I'd argue I'm in the wrong for not walking on the correct side of the road in that instance.

I understand it'd be a problem for posties, but there are driveways and roads for them, and it gets a bit subjective about how much room they need.

Maybe a blanket rule allowing parking on all nature strips, but not within 1m-2m of the road to allow that access is a better way of doing things?

If lot sizes and roads are going to continue to get smaller through modern planning, under the guise of modern home owners preferring low maintenance, which somehow translated into unnavigable suburbs, then common sense needs to be implemented.

Our public transport system is simply not good enough to negate the need for a car and our Premier re-elect has previously stated she has no intention of delivering an improved network until our population reaches choke point.

So that means more narrow streets and fines on cars unless some common sense and compassion is shown and the income from fines is sacrificed.

Either that, or enforce the law without exception.

The constant stories of inconsistency, of some cars being pinged and others not, makes it hard to substantiate the claim of it being for the greater good.

Originally published as We're in a damn fine mess now