Melburnians are benefiting from more flexible parking options in the city, using more than 90,000 free 15-minute parking sessions, since parking improvements began in July, City of Melbourne Council has revealed.
The Council is increasing availability of on-street car parks for people running quick errands, in a bid to keep more bays turning over to attract more customers.
Parking for 15 minutes or less is now free in any 2-hour space in the central city through the EasyPark app. Parking fees are charged if a parking session is longer than 15 minutes.
“Early data shows our parking improvements are working exactly as intended – keeping spaces turning over outside city businesses, while making it easier to find a park,” said Lord Mayor, Sally Capp.
“We’re catering for a range of parking needs and have added more than 200 loading zone and accessible parking spaces for those who need it most.
“Drivers are embracing the flexibility of our new free 15-minute parking system, which is opening up the city by giving more drivers access to free parking outside more businesses and services.”
New parking signage has been installed from Elizabeth Street to Spring Street, between Flinders Street and La Trobe Street. Changes will be rolled out across the rest of the central city by February 2024.
Works completed so far have boosted the number of spaces available to pick-up and drop-off passengers by 63%. The number of loading zone spaces for delivery vans has been increased by 38%, Council said in a statement.
“The parking improvements in the central city are the first in a neighbourhood approach to improve parking across the municipality. We’re working with the community and businesses to make parking simpler, fairer and more reliable – while addressing the differing needs of each neighbourhood,” it said.
Southbank and Carlton are the next neighbourhoods under review, with community engagement currently underway online and via in-person workshops.
“The community told us they wanted simpler parking signage – and we’re well on the way to replacing the city’s complex signs with versions that are much easier to read on the go,” said deputy lead City Transport, Infrastructure and Operations portfolio Councillor, Davydd Griffiths.
“We’re also adding more loading zones in the right locations, so business deliveries can arrive on time and with no fuss.”
