NSW: Councils could be forced into massive backflip after directive from Chris Minns’ government over paperless parking fines
Councils in a major Australian city appear to be being forced to make a major U-turn in the way they issue parking fines after facing huge criticism from motorists.
Local governments in Sydney are ignoring a New South Wales government directive to ban parking wardens from issuing fines for parking without a ticket.
Unsuspecting drivers only discover weeks later that they have been fined, instead of having a ticket stuck on their windshield, reports The Daily Telegraph.
Under this system, drivers lose the ability to contest the fine by collecting evidence immediately after being arrested.
The Minnesota government is now preparing for a complete ban on undocumented parking tickets.
The reverse movement means that municipal parking attendants will have to inform drivers that they have received a parking ticket by leaving a physical card.
Otherwise, municipalities are faced with the expensive option of replacing all parking signs to warn drivers that they could be fined without their knowledge.
Last fiscal year, suburban municipalities collected more than $155 million in revenue from parking fines without a parking ticket, with the number of fines increasing by 47 percent.
In March, New South Wales Finance Minister Courtney Houssos (pictured) wrote to 128 councils asking them to return to the old system of paper tickets left on a car’s windscreen
Since Ms Houssos’ request, 30 municipalities have indicated they want to return to traditional paper fines, while others are waiting to be forced to do so by the state government.
Last year, more than 800,000 drivers received a fine for not parking digitally, compared to almost 560,000 drivers who received a fine on the spot.
The introduction of paperless parking fines was piloted in 2020 by then Premier Gladys Berejiklian, before being expanded to more councils.
By March of this year, 48 municipalities had introduced paperless parking fines.
Sydney City Council has seen parking fines increase by almost 10 per cent in 2023-24 compared to the previous year.
Mayor Clover Moore’s council imposed nearly $45 million in fines on motorists.
Liverpool City Council in Sydney’s south-west issued more than $4 million in parking fines last financial year, a 20 per cent annual increase.
Unpapered parking fines were initially introduced as a trial in 2020 by then Premier Gladys Berejiklian, before being expanded to more councils
Following complaints from outraged drivers earlier this year, New South Wales Finance Minister Courtney Houssos banned new councils from introducing undocumented parking fines.
In March, Ms Houssos wrote to 128 municipalities asking them to return to the old system of leaving paper tickets on car windscreens.
‘I ask your council to improve the parking fine procedure so that drivers are immediately notified in writing when they receive a parking fine.
‘This is not currently a requirement of the scheme.’
Since her request, 30 municipalities have indicated they want to return to traditional paper fines, while others are waiting for the state government to force them to do so.
Ms Houssos said feedback from drivers was “overwhelmingly” in favour of “instant notification of parking fines” rather than paper tickets.
“While the ticketless parking system has its advantages, I am aware that the community has concerns about issuing ticketless parking tickets, particularly the timeliness of ticket notifications,” she said.
‘If councils are unwilling to provide a common-sense solution, the New South Wales Government will step in and implement its policies to ensure the no-penalty parking system meets community expectations.’