A friend of mine (yeah, yeah, I know what you are thinking, but you would be wrong!!) just got a local council fine for parking his car over his own driveway. OK, I understand that the inspector would not have known that it was the car owner's driveway.
Do you think my friend would/should be successful in asking for it to be waived under these circumstances?
MVP right there.
WINRAR!
Had to control myself from lol'ing on the bus on the way home
This happened to my neighbour - he parked his car on the nature strip in front of his house so as to not block access to the driveway - & was fined by the local council.
Council advised that the postman reported him as he took exception to the car being parked too close to the fence line which made it difficult for the postman to access the mailbox which my neighbour disputes.
Neighbour was angry enough that he did a door knock to every house in the street to let residents know as it is not uncommon for people to park on the nature strip as most have multiple cars but only single driveway/garage.
I don't think OP's friend was even on the nature strip, literally just on the street, but in front of his own driveway.
100% CORRECT!
I'm confused, can you dumb it down for me?
So was your friend blocking the fire hydrant or parked up a tree?
Lots of Councils will fine you for parking on nature strips even if you are part on and part off, eg narrow road. Doesn't matter how many cars.
You can’t park on nature strip lol. It’s council property and there’s million reasons why they need access at any time. It’s firmly illegal.
Yes, that includes parking with two wheels on it. You need to park with all wheels on the road.
You are correct that the councils do not permit it, even 2 wheels just on the curb, (to try to give traffic in our narrow street just a little more room) but, steady on about your comment that "there's a million reasons why they need access at any time". What bunkum!
In WA you're freely able to park on the nature strip outside your own property (as long as there's no signs saying you can't and you're not blocking a footpath/driveway etc).
You aren't allowed to park on someone else's verge though without their permission.
eg. https://www.cottesloe.wa.gov.au/parking-in-cottesloe.aspx
Verge Parking
To park on a verge, you will need the permission of the owner/occupier of the premises adjacent to the verge, unless where signage prohibits such action.
https://www.victoriapark.wa.gov.au/Around-town/Parking-and-t…
Verge Parking
A verge is defined as the portion of a thoroughfare which lies between the boundary of a carriageway and the adjacent property line and includes any part of the verge designed for or intended for use by vehicles but does not include a footpath.This means that the width of a verge can vary from property to property and in different areas.
No verge restrictions in placeTown of Victoria Park allows a resident or property owner the ability to control who parks on the verge adjacent to their property.
Most/all council's here in WA have similar laws.
This may be permitted under local laws.
http://www6.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/legis/wa/conso…
yeah but who lives in WA.
I forgot you guys call it a verge, sounds so weird.
Your friend needs to go back to his skateboard until he can memorise all the road rules and not just the ones he likes ;-)
How many skateboards do you have then?
Are you implying skateboarders don't need to know the road rules?
They do. You can get convicted of drink-riding if you are caught riding on the road drunk on a skateboard. Happened to a mate in high-school.
Blocking a driveway apron prevents emergency service vehicles from entering the property. Anyone that does that deserves to donate to the state.
Not really because entry to the property in this case is blocked by locked double gates on the property boundary!
So? That's why one of the many reasons the Fire department carry Hydraulic Rescue Tools; to gain access through metal objects.
But they can not easily move an entire car without calling a tow-truck, by which time the fire could have killed people.
OP please post Ms paint pic ty
…ok, see below.
Do you think my friend would/should be successful in asking for it to be waived under these circumstances?
No. Now that we know he was blocking a driveway (whichever house it belongs to is of no concern to the council), your friend will have to wear the fine. Perhaps next time if he has to park on the street for whatever reason, he will park so as not to block any driveways like everyone else.
This is something new to me and I have to say I do it quite often as our street have very little space to park my car.
What's wrong with parking in your garage/carport/driveway on your property?
About 12 years ago when I visited my parents, I parked on the grass between the footpath and the roadway. I got a council issued fine for parking there, yep those are the rules. Anyway I emailed them to consider waiving it on the grounds that my parents lived there for 20+ years and had maintained that grass (which is really council property) …. they said the fine was issued correctly (which is cool) and that won't waive the fine. So every month after that, I rung up the council and told them to come out and cut the grass as we would no longer be maintaining it (due to that fine). 12 years on and I can promise you that my parents have never ever mowed the front of the fence anymore.
Malicious compliance. 👍🏻
If I have to classify this, would this be chaotic good??????
..y’all need to learn your rules.
It’s a council easement but the landowner is expected to maintain it (mowing).
Expectation is not a rule, sorry.
(They did send us a letter in the first few months, like you, saying it was expected owners help out mow the lawns)
Guess we ignored that drivel of a letter.
12 years on my parents continue to refuse to maintain anything in front of their front fence - which is fantastic for them. Less time on maintenance, more time Drunk On The Good Life, thanks local council.
Ok, well here in QLD, I've witnessed either the state or local council law where it's written that you're to maintain the strip. So it actually IS law.
@StickMan: We're in NSW so definitely different but anyway what happens if someone refuses?? What will the council do? I doubt they would take people to court over a $50 mowing expense…
@TheMindsetTraveller: The fine is collected by Revenue NSW.
https://www.revenue.nsw.gov.au/fines
Qld have SPER.
https://www.qld.gov.au/law/fines-and-penalties/state-penalti…
@whooah1979: But I doubt any council (in NSW anyway) are allowed to issue fines for not mowing the grass outside of your property in the first place.
@whooah1979: So I googled (and you can too) and looked up multiple council websites across QLD, NSW and VIC for some guidance on this issue.
Most rely on the "goodwill" of homeowners to mow/maintain the part of grass between their fence and the road. Some even stated in firm terms (or trying to scare you) "it is the responsibility" of the homeowner.
None, have ever suggested that not maintaining the grass strip - will incur an infringement or penalty notice.
Funny thing is, the councils want you to maintain it but if and when you want to plant a tree or even a flower on the grass - you have to ask for permission. Funny how that if you are "willingly" maintaining council's land but if your lawn mower runs over your feet and it gets amputated, the council is not legally liable for your injuries.
Anyway, I'll stop commenting here. In my situation, 12 years on and we refuse to mow that piece of grass and will continue to do so many more years forward. They aren't selling anytime soon so having a few inches of extra growth many times per year, won't be too much worry for them.
Got a pic of what it looks like now?
As requested, here is an actual google earth image of where the car (in black) in question was parked across the owner's driveway.
What did you use to take the screenshot, a Tamagotchi?
Doesn't want to give away presence of 'pot' plants…
Palm Pilot.
If I had a dollar for every pixel in that image I would be lining up at Centrelink tomorrow.
What the… can the offender even park his car out front not in front of his driveway? Super close to that T intersection.
What is this? An MS Paint diagram for ants?
ok, point taken, see the link just below for elephants!!!
…something not as sophisticated as that! Sorry for the quality, mate.
my gameboy camera takes better pics
can I borrow it then!
DiscoJango: Thanks for the suggestion. I just grabbed my gameboy and took another picture, try this……
https://files.ozbargain.com.au/upload/150847/64343/car.png
Is that better?……
@GOCAT9: Errr, slightly I don't remember google satellite view having this crap of a quality……should be crisp……extremely crisp….even MS Paint drawing would be better!
Used to live in the Inner West of Sydney where parking is a pain and those lucky enough to have driveways should count their blessings.
Driveways exist and remove a public parking spot so that access to and fro the property is available - it is not an excuse for a designated spot on the street.
It bugs me when people park in front of their driveways or partially on/blocking the footpath. It is illegal and rightly so.
Short answer is no. You can't park across a driveway and the law doesn't make an exception for parking across your own driveway.
I would write a letter to council asking if it can be waved. Many councils will do so if the driver doesn't have a record of fines as a one off gesture of good faith.
I think by now its clear the fine is valid, but it doesn't hurt to ask. I guess general logic for the validity is:
1.Emergency vehicle access (ambulance, fire, police personnel may have a more difficult time accessing your property or neighbours, of people injured in the pedestrian way.
2. Blocks access to the council land between your house and the road (you don't have rights all the way to the road
3. Disrupts designed traffic flow. I assume they parked across the driveway because they are on a busy street and there was no parking on either side of the driveway.
The fools at City of Boroondara, Vic. fined me for parking in the street, in front of my own driveway! Upon my challenging this, they claimed that in the event that my house caught on fire, that having my car there might impede fire-fighters to get to my house! I kid you not.
And you know exactly when your house is going to catch fire? Or exactly when someone inside may break a leg, or have an unexpected but serious medical emergency?
I mean, they don't make laws just for you. For your one house. One driveway. Surely, if 20,000 people park across 20,000 driveways, there'll be an incident of some type at some time that requires access? This is the Council's argument.
But if you feel this law is so egregious, and so violates your 'rights', then there are remedies. You can start a petition, gain thousands of signatures. Write to Council. Discuss with Council's various committees. You could even run for election on the issue. And once elected (no doubt with an overwhelming percentage of the popular vote) operate from within the Council to change this terrible oppressive law. This is how our democracy operates.
Me? If I was going to expend this much energy on an issue, I think I would make it one which perhaps slightly benefits humanity (or even small chunks of it) in some tangible way. You know… like helping refugees, or little kids with cancer, or the homeless, or cute puppies about to be euthanised.
Then again, perhaps a solution is to not park across a driveway. It's not your driveway. It doesn't belong to you. It is a convenience and a facility offered by the local council for your (and other people's) use.
This isn't a new law, hence why you never see anyone park across a (even their own) driveway.
Pay the fine, wrap up the thread.
My grandpa used to talk about this all the time when I was growing up 30odd yrs ago. Surprised it's not common knowledge.
Thread title reads like a DAILY MAIL article.
Throw some dirt and potplants on the driveway, take a photo and say it's decommissioned?
Both scenarios discussed here are illegal. You can’t park across a driveway on the street. You can park on a driveway which covers the nature strip. This includes any part of the car, not just most of the car. Pretty common complaint and gets a tonne of play from news sites on social media as it’s an emotive topic. Still no chance getting off.
I have seen a driveway lead to a nowhere like a fence with no moveable sections, so don’t know how that’s handled.
You can park on a driveway which covers the nature strip.
This is easy money for the state of NSW.
https://www.rms.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/index.cgi?fuseaction=deme…
PARKING
Obstruct access to ramp/path/passageway (school zone) $337 2 Road Rules 2014
Rule 198 (1)
PARKING
Stop on/across driveway/other access to/from land (school zone) $337 2 Road Rules 2014
Rule 198 (2)
You can park on a driveway which covers the nature strip
Not in NSW. That’s how I became $263 poorer. There aren’t even any footpaths in my street.
sorry meant to be “can’t” …. makes my point useless at this point but anyways.
Is there anything you can't be fined for in this country?
Yet still seems to to be full of f… Wits
Might get waived if you write away, apologize, say you cannot afford it due to hardship etc.
Will not get waived, because it was outside your own house. Firstly, you do not own the road outside your house. Secondly, it being outside your house does not change the fact of it being unlawful.
NSW law states you cant park over a driveway regardless of who's it is.
The offence is specifically called: Stop on/across driveway/other access to/from land and will cost $257.
But I do this in GTV all the time and never got a fine once!
Thank!