New “smart parking” digital sensor system to replace tickets in Bunbury CBD

Parking tickets will soon be a thing of the past for visitors to Bunbury’s CBD when a new “first-of-its-kind” digital system is installed in a bid to stop people taking advantage of free parking and make more parking available.

Set to be rolled out in six months, the “smart parking” initiative will mean people no longer need to display a ticket on their dashboard.

Currently the city offers free ticketed parking for two or three hours and paid parking to stay longer.

The move will see the city’s on-street parking meters removed and replaced with in-ground sensors, which will be triggered when a driver pulls into a bay and will alert the rangers when the vehicle stays longer than the allowed time limit.

Parking meters in “shopper carparks” will be modified to remove the need for tickets, instead requiring visitors to enter their licence plate or register via parking app PayStay.

No changes will be made to parking prices or hours, and the new system will not remove the need for parking rangers.

It comes after Bunbury City Council on Tuesday endorsed Smart Parking Limited as the company to implement the new parking system — a switch that is expected to save the city more than $1.7 million over the next five years by reducing ongoing costs and maintenance.

Residents expressed mixed views over the announcement online, with some calling for an end to metered parking in the CBD completely while others welcomed the news.

“Once again that’s why I shop elsewhere so I don’t have to stuff about if I go a bit longer than expected,” one person said.

“Hope it puts a stop to shop owners/workers parking in the street all day,” another said.

Bunbury Mayor Gary Brennan said it was an exciting step forward for the city.

“It’s important that we still have a parking system in place that encourages that churn of vehicles, but the City’s new smart parking solution will mean it will be easier than ever to park and do what you need to do,” he said.

“The new system means savings for our community in terms of annual maintenance, while also benefiting our retail and hospitality businesses in Bunbury.”