Drivers could be issued with warning notices for illegally parking in Melton if it is their first offence.
Coburn ward councillor Bob Turner moved a motion at last week’s meeting for consideration of more lenient measures for illegal parking, but officers say a review of current processes and procedures would be needed first.
The bid to issue warnings for a first-time offence comes amid public criticism about the number of parking fines being issued where roads upgrades have meant spaces are limited.
Earlier this month, dozens of commuters were issued fines of up to $95 for parking illegally at Melton station where there is a parking shortfall because of works.
An officers report tabled at the October 16 meeting stated that the council neither has the technology to issue formal warnings at the time of a breach nor a system to record the warnings.
“The issuing of infringements is generally a manual-based process,” the report stated. “Regarding enforcement in business areas and patrolling of timed parking areas, when an officer identifies a breach the infringement is manually entered into an infringement book, and a copy of this infringement is affixed to the windscreen of the vehicle.
“In this situation the officer does not have access to technology and cannot identify if it is the vehicle’s first offence.”
But council officers said that warnings are already being issued where possible.
“In the patrolling of the timed areas, in most cases officers allow extra time before issuing infringements and if a person arrives late to their vehicle and the parking officer has not written the infringement, the parking officer will speak to that person rather than issuing an infringement,” the report stated.
“In areas where infringements are being issued multiples times, officers review the area and work with traffic engineering to either change signs or road conditions to reduce the number of infringements issued.
“If it is deemed that issuing infringements in a particular area is unfair, and parking in this area is safe, we stop issuing infringements until the review is complete.”
