City receives results of parking survey

THE City of Greater Geelong has recently held a survey to help contribute to the parking strategy for central Geelong.

One of the key concerns revealed by the survey was that many people felt public transport is not reliable and fast enough to be a viable option for travelling for work.

The survey also revealed that people believe on-street parking would be better left for hospital visits and accessing services than commuters and residents.

Geelong mayor Bruce Harwood said the council needed to balance short-term reality with the long-term vision.

“While cheap or free on-street parking in the CBD seems appealing at face value, those parks would soon be fully exhausted by city workers. This would make it impossible for people accessing services, shopping or visiting hospitals to park on-street.

“CBD parking is only one piece of Geelong’s transport picture – we need a safe, reliable and connected transport network that can serve us for the long-term.”

A total of 2,582 people responded to the survey, with 66 per cent of the respondents commuting to Geelong for work, and 80 per cent of the respondents travelling by car.

The majority of people surveyed said they would be content with a daily parking rate of $8.

The survey also showed that despite their preferences, about half of the respondents parked on-street.

Cr Harwood said he believed improved transport would greatly improve the city’s liveability, but that state government support was also needed.

“We continue to advocate to the state government to drastically improve our public transport system.

“I have no doubt that Geelong can be one of Australia’s most liveable cities if we can work together to create a safe, reliable and sustainable transport system for the people of Geelong.”