ABC Radio Melbourne: Guess which illegal parking complaint is growing fastest in Victoria
We've all had a run-in with a less-than-considerate parker. ABC Radio Melbourne's Brigitte Duclos wanted to know what's really driving Victoria's parking gripes, so she put the question to our CEO, Danny Gorog, live on air, callers and all.
A quick parking reality check:
- Victoria recorded 71,000 illegal parking reports in the past 12 months, around 200 a day, up 9% year-on-year.
- The single biggest complaint is cars blocking driveways, with more than 10,000 Victorians reporting this issue.
- Parking on nature strips came in as the second most common gripe, with 6,500 reports of damaged grass and churned-up verges.
- Trucks, trailers and heavy vehicles parked in residential streets rounded out the top three frustrations, often tied to confusion about what's actually legal.
Before revealing the fastest-growing category, Danny put Brigitte on the spot:
"What type of illegally parked report do you think grew the most, three times, this year?"
After a few guesses, the answer: reports of vehicles parked in disabled bays without a permit, up threefold, with 2,500 reports in the past year.
Danny also broke down where in Victoria illegal parking reports are most common. Inner Melbourne leads the way with nearly 18,000 reports, up 12%, followed by Melbourne's west with almost 13,000, up 16%. Interestingly, Melbourne's inner south and the Mornington Peninsula both saw reports decline, down 6% and 9% respectively, proving not every parking trend points in the same direction.
For callers wondering what's legal and what's not, Danny's advice was simple: if there are no parking restrictions in place, vehicles like caravans, boats and trailers can generally stay put, but restrictions can (and do) change, so it pays to check local signage.
Check out the full segment below.
