Received a Parking Fine Melbourne CBD

itschrisraymond on 05/03/2017 - 22:05
Last edited 06/03/2017 - 10:17 by 1 other user

Hey all

Today I parked on Queen Street in Melbourne CBD. For those who are familiar with that street, it's obviously free after 6:30pm on a Sunday.

Today, I parked on that street and a patrolling ticket officer told me its free for 1 hour. I got to the parking space at 5pm.

I had half hour payable which was going to be paid off using the PayStay app, which notified me that the fee is not applicable for the park zone. Really confused by this, I ignore and the officer said not to worry about it.

Now, after I got to my car, I received a fine of $78.

My question is; is this contestable? I feel I was given misinformation and found it silly that I couldn't pay for the 30 mins

This what it showed when I tried to pay http://i68.tinypic.com/2psp1t0.jpg

Automotive

closed Comments

  • altomic on 05/03/2017 - 22:12

    "please check signage for more details"

    what did the signage say?

    • itschrisraymond on 05/03/2017 - 22:19

      9am - 6:30pm but I was trying to pay for the half hour that wasn't free. But paystay wouldn't allow me, hence the photo

      • altomic on 05/03/2017 - 22:26

        were there parking meters?

        • itschrisraymond on 05/03/2017 - 22:29

          Yes. I've paid for 30 mins before and it was half price. Don't understand why it didn't work this time.

        • altomic on 05/03/2017 - 22:31
          +3

          @itschrisraymond: so the physical parking meter machines wouldn't accept your money either?

        • itschrisraymond on 06/03/2017 - 13:15

          @altomic: The idea of PayStay is to have money taken from you, just like putting money in the meter machines. I don't see the difference. I've done it before and had no issues.

        • altomic on 06/03/2017 - 14:22

          @itschrisraymond:
          itschrisraymond "so I tried to pay with PayStay and it refused"
          magistrate "did you try the parking meter?"
          itschrisraymond "no"
          magistrate "pay the bailiff $78"

      • apple2016 on 05/03/2017 - 22:40

        I am quite sure all melbourne cbd parking is free on Sundays & public holidays and are time limited.
        Was it a 1P parking? If yes then the ticket machine was correct in not accepting your money. You can park free for only one hour. You cannot pay to park for additional 30 mins.

      • DogGunn on 06/03/2017 - 00:53
        +12

        You've misunderstood the parking sign. I recommend you read up on the road rules in general.

        If the sign says 1P 9am-6:30pm, it means you cannot stay there for longer than an hour.
        If the sign says 2P METER 9am-6:30pm, it means you cannot stay there for longer than two hours, and you must pay a fee for the amount of time under two hours you're parked there.

        It doesn't mean when the sign is 1P that you can pay for an extra half an hour after parking there for an hour. After one hour, you must move your car.
        This rule also applies to when the sign is 2P Meter. You can't go back and feed the meter after the first two hours have finished, you must move your car.

        The fine is very likely for parking for longer than indicated on the sign.

        In simple terms, you cannot pay for an extra half an hour when the sign says 1P. I've never heard anyone misunderstand the parking signs in a manner you have.

  • tomsco on 05/03/2017 - 22:16

    Maybe he was just a ford driver that had it out for you.

  • mba on 05/03/2017 - 22:35
    +9

    Sounds like you overstayed the hour and the parking officer hung around for the fine.

    So you parked at 5pm, parking officer noted your time, you came back probably after 6:30pm, and found the fine.

    Paystay is correct in that that area is not a ticket zone on Sunday but a 1P zone until 6:30pm and therefore cannot pay the extra 30mins. You can only park there for 1 hour from 9am to 6:30pm on Sunday. You cannot pay for an additional 30mins in that zone.

    • apple2016 on 05/03/2017 - 22:44
      +3

      Most of the parking spots are electronically monitored for overstay and parking officers are automatically notified if the time limit is exceeded in melb CBD.

      • [Deactivated] on 06/03/2017 - 07:57

        Been like this in Brisbane for years before Melbourne had it, it's a great system because I'm tired of the rich snobs up here not paying for parking

    • itschrisraymond on 06/03/2017 - 13:14

      Strange this is, I've parked in the same spot on a Saturday and was able to pay for the 30 minutes I stayed over time. No issues and was debited $2.80 from that parking space.

  • mbck on 05/03/2017 - 23:25

    Yeah you don't pay for tix on Sundays in the cbd. If it's 3 hour, then the timer starts from when your car rolls in. They've installed sensors on the ground which will give nearby inspectors an alarm if you've overstayed your welcome.

    You can try and argue re misinformation. But without written proof…I doubt you'll win anything tbh.

  • [Deactivated] on 06/03/2017 - 00:12
    +5

    The infringement you received wasn't for non-payment, it was for overstaying the limit that applied to your parking spot.

    Fair enough, cop it.

    • itschrisraymond on 06/03/2017 - 00:21

      Copping it is the worst, isn't it?

      • Cheeper on 06/03/2017 - 02:39

        Feel ya pain… better things to do with $78 :-(
        Sounds like it was sunday free parking but limited to 1 hour.. and you overstayed the hour?? Right/wrong?
        No matter what, you would not have been able to pay for more time.
        I bet you are not the first person caught by this.
        Being an out of towner I would have been caught by the way the signs are written also.
        Not all are city folk that are experts on the parking rules and regulations and sign lingo.

        • itschrisraymond on 06/03/2017 - 13:07

          personally, i feel it's a stupid idea to have an app like PayStay, if drivers cant even pay using that. The app gives customers the chance to top up their account and use that to pay off their parking.

          The information I was given from the patrolling officer, deemed incorrect on my end. But I took his word for it.

    • itschrisraymond on 06/03/2017 - 13:09

      Just to add on to this, I know it was overstaying - hence why I wanted to pay for the extra 30 minutes of over staying in parking. As mentioned below in the comment, the app "PayStay" gives drivers the chance to top up their account and pay whatever there is. I've parked in several spots throughout the CBD and have paid using the app, of $2.50. I don't see why that wasn't applicable in this situation.

      • DogGunn on 06/03/2017 - 17:56

        Because it is a complete misunderstanding on your part. You can't top up your parking when you've overstayed the limit.
        If you've done it before, its simply because you've gotten away with the parking. Nothing more.

  • cheapisgood on 06/03/2017 - 01:47

    can you take a picture of the sign? It probably was 1P on Sunday up to 6:30pm, then untimed after.

    • itschrisraymond on 06/03/2017 - 12:55

      the ticket officer said "not to worry about it" whatever the hell he meant by that

      • cheapisgood on 06/03/2017 - 16:02

        not to worry as in you don't have to pay. Sunday is free parking in the CBD. I'm asking you for a photo and youre not providing it.

  • [Deactivated] on 06/03/2017 - 07:59

    Pay the fine, as much as I hate parking fines myself

    Clearly it's 1P and the program even advised to check the signage as it would of been outside of the pay to park time, overstaying 30 mins is an expensive lesson, probably would of been better off using Wilson or secure parking for 5 dollar after hours usage and been happier knowing you were covered then

    Yes it sucks but at the end of the day Melbourne is a hard place to find parking anytime of the day so I guess 1P zones are in place to ensure people rotate / move

    • itschrisraymond on 06/03/2017 - 13:01

      I am thankful it's only $78, which I don't really mind paying IF I have to. I just would've thought there was a small chance of fighting. Oh well

  • [Deactivated] on 06/03/2017 - 10:01

    i unknowingly parked where there was a yellow line - it was a residential area in the back streets of mosman (sydney) on a sunday afternoon. I couldn't believe there was a yellow line when i got home and found the ticket on my screen (it was small!) there but i googled it and sure enough there was. fine was $275! I just didn't see it or of course wouldn't have bloody parked there. so just to make you feel better about your $78 fine! Fines here is so outrageous it makes me sick. if i was driving drugged or drunk or recklessly then ok fine me up big but most us of normal people make mistakes sometimes but they love to really gauge you. As if Sydney isn't bloody expensive enough.

  • goodcopbadcop on 06/03/2017 - 13:11

    And some of the speeding ticket stories that people have experienced will set your mind at rest that this is a lesson learnt. Don't drive onto the Freeways in Perth at anymore than 60kph even though you can see the 100kph sign is right there as your lane merges with the rest of the traffic doing 100kph and somehow need to get up to that speed in a split 5 seconds. They have camera's on the on and off ramps - quite close to the Freeway and these light up to show you that even 1kph over say 70kph - so 71kph will give you a $200 fine and 1 demerit point. So somehow you have to get to 60kph at the off ramp or not be speeding up if you are on the on ramp to get onto the Freeway or you will get pinged. And the rest of the traffic on the Freeway appears to be doing a cruisey 110kph with no camera in sight.

  • tomsco on 06/03/2017 - 15:19

    To the OP, I don't think you understand what offence you have committed.

    As others have said, the parking is free on Queen St all of Sunday, but it is time restricted (in this case 1 hour).

    There is a very good chance the inspector saw you trying to pay and was advising you do not need to pay (note: this does not override the fact you need to be out within 1 hour).

    The app would not let you pay, because it was not in the hours where payment is required. Likewise, if the actual meters had refund slots, the meters would not have taken your money (even if you could feed the meters, it would be pointless).

    One hour parking means one hour parking. You cannot blame the inspector - they have no authority to let you flout parking restrictions. If you needed longer and were prepared to pay, you should have gone into off street parking.

  • Moderatorhamza23 on 07/03/2017 - 13:32

    Comments closed by OP request (situation resolved - misunderstanding that is now understood).

    Thanks

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