Did you know that at the beginning of the financial year 2018-2019, the Brisbane City Council predicted in its budget plan, a revenue generation of $22 million? According to a report in the Brisbane Times, the council lifestyle and community services chairman Matthew Bourke revealed that a massive $7.3 million of the proposed revenue was to be generated from fines paid by the citizens.
If that number makes you roll your eyes, here’s another statistic – The article further states that out of the $7.3 million, around $3 million was estimated to be made from parking fines alone!
Everytime you pay a parking fine the city of Brisbane says Thank you for the contribution, however simple parking mistakes can cost you big, so to help keep the money in your pocket, we have come up with a list of basic parking signs that you should be looking out for, every time you step out of your vehicle.
You cannot park in an area marked with a Clearway Sign for the designated time. Your vehicle will be towed if you park in that area within that time frame. Some clearway signs do not mention a time period, in which case that it applies to all hours on all days. Any vehicle that is towed from a clearway area will have to be recovered at the owners’ expense. In case your vehicle gets towed away you may contact the Brisbane Council’s 24-hour contact centre for help.
No stopping and No parking signs without any particular time or day apply to 24 hours/ 7 days. You are liable to be fined if you do not follow these rules. Lookout for no stopping zones on the roads – continuous yellow lines on the road mark these areas.
With No parking signs, you may drop or pickup somebody provided the action is completed within 3 minutes and the driver is within 3 meters of his/her vehicle at the time.
These signs depict traffic and parking control areas. They are installed on all entries to an area and indicate the applicable conditions. However, please keep in mind, individual signs depicting certain days and times installed on specific streets within the area override traffic and parking control area conditions. Its complicated, we know.
Vehicles that have a valid permit will not have to adhere to these conditions given if these areas have a signed parking sign that says ‘Resident Permit Excepted’.
Passenger, commercial vehicle and shared loading zone signs depict areas that can be used by motorists to drop off or pick up other passengers or commercial/non-commercial goods. These signs come with the time limit permissions as well which should be taken into consideration to avoid fining.
Bus zones are designated for bus services to pick up or drop off passengers.
Taxi zones allow only taxis to stop and cater to passenagers.
Only authorised postal vehicles are allowed to park in the Mail zones. Please note that this zone does not allow vehicles that are using mailboxes or visiting a post office.
Work Zones allow only vehicles from nearby construction sites delivering steel or concrete to stop by in that area.
This zone caters to citizens with disability who find it difficult to get in or out of their vehicles. You will have permission to park in this area only if you have a valid Australian Disability Parking Scheme permit.
Transit lanes help to keep the roads congestion free encouraging people to drive in these lanes. These are depicted by the Transit Lane signs, which also specify the operational hours. You are not allowed to stop in transit lanes for parking when they are operational. You must also have at least two people in the vehicle to use the T2 lane, and at least 3 to use a T3 lane.
Vehicles are not permitted to park within 20 meters on the approach and 10 meters on the departure side of these Bus Stop Signs.
Please do not park in areas with the Tow-Away sign at said times and days. In case your vehicle gets towed away you may contact the Brisbane Council’s 24-hour contact centre for help.
Bus lanes are reserved only for Public Bus services as they help keep the roads congestion-free. Please do not park in a bus lane during operational hours.
Motorists need to understand that parking laws might differ according to different parts of Queensland, the above list contains the most basic common parking signs as found in the Brisbane City Council’s Parking Guide.