Car Park Costs – how much did you say??
Occasionally, people inquire as to the costs involved in building a car park. This is not an easy question to answer as there are many variables to consider — Is it at-grade or multi-storey, CBD or regional, number of bays, which state and city?….I rest my case! Fortunately, there are excellent resources available for a […]
Is driving to school becoming the norm?
To shed some light in the much-debated issue of school traffic, we gathered data from six schools we have worked at in the last couple of years (click on the image above to see the details). In most of the charts, you can see that at least half of the students arrive by car (blue […]
Sydneysiders are embracing share bikes
It’s not often that we find positive news about cycling in Australia; after all, only 1.1% of Australian commuters choose cycling as their transport mode (Census 2016). However, we have been pleasantly surprised to hear about the share bike uptake in Sydney. “Over 22,000 share bike trips are being made across Sydney each week – […]
Beer with an Engineer
Steve Wellman, Senior Civil/Traffic Engineer at ptc., was recently interviewed by Melanie and Dominic De Gioia for their podcast Beer with an Engineer. The hot topic of the interview revolved around the issues with Sydney’s transport planning and the lack of integrated options. Steve pointed out examples such as the fact that Westconnex construction works […]
Unique underground structure to fit Opera House’s design
That the Sydney Opera House has a unique design we all know, but are you familiar with its ‘doughnut-shaped’ double helix car park? According to ABC, the car park design is one-of-a-kind that can’t be found anywhere else in the world. Philip Pells and Neil Fimeri, two of the key people involved in the […]
Sydney Trains disruptions – poll results
Last week, we conducted a quick poll via Twitter and email to get a feel for the potential impacts of the train disruptions on commuters. We asked a simple question: Are you going to avoid public transport? We received 170 responses, 48 on Twitter and 122 via email. Compared to 2016 Census data regarding travel […]
Sydney train strike – Are you going to avoid public transport?
We would like to know the effects of the upcoming disruptions to Sydney trains on commuters. Answer our poll on Twitter: The upcoming disruptions to Sydney Trains will affect many. Are you going to avoid public transport? #ptcSydneyTrainsPoll #SydneyTrains — Cristina Lynn (@Aus_Parqueen) January 24, 2018 Image credit: Sydney Trains
Sydney is not full yet
A recent poll conducted for Fairfax Media indicated that 66.4% of the 1,647 respondents believe that Sydney is full and that property development should be pushed out of the Sydney metro area. Although the local population may feel that the city is crowded, there are 103 cities in the world with a larger population than […]
Commuting in Melbourne versus Sydney
It may be commonplace to state that traffic in Sydney is worse than in Melbourne. After all, Sydney’s population is larger and the harbour splits the city in two making it harder to cross from one side to the other. Surprisingly, a new study challenges this common notion, as reported by The Conversation. Researchers from […]
In-ground traffic lights
A trial of in-ground traffic lights is being conducted by the NSW state government to reduce accidents involving pedestrians, especially those addicted to their mobile phones. In-ground traffic lights were installed at the intersections of Pitt and Goulburn streets, and Hay and Dixon streets, as reported by SMH. The lights turn red to signal pedestrians […]
Share Your Parking Spot
The sharing economy is all around us and is disrupting industries especially by addressing specific consumer’s needs in a more convenient way than the traditional players. Even the parking industry isn’t escaping from it. Last week another parking share app was launched in Australia, more specifically in Coogee and Bondi Beaches. According to Dynamic Business, […]
Lower Cycling Rates in Sydney
Road and Maritime Services numbers show that, in 2016, cycling rates in Sydney are lower than in 2013, as reported by SMH. The average daily cyclists during peak hours at the Anzac Bridge, Anzac Parade and Sydney Harbour Bridge was 3,830 in 2009 and reached a peak of 5,249 in 2013. However, the figures declined […]
V2V and V2I new transport technology in NYC
Vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication is fast becoming one of the biggest sea changes in transportation technology, following right behind the foot steps of self-driving vehicles. The core essence of this technology allows cars, signs and traffic to communicate with one another over Wi-Fi-like airways, according to theverge.com. As such, drivers will have access to more […]
Is Sydney Ready for a Congestion Tax?
The topical and contentious issue of a congestion tax was again discussed in the SMH this week. As major transport projects are completed over the next few years, the Baird government has left the door open to consider introducing a congestion tax, whose aim would be to charge motorists to enter the CBD to […]
Transport Stats – Sydney vs Vancouver
Following on from our Vancouver Promotes Active Transportation story, we were pleased to see a post recently from The Urbanist, ‘How Does Sydney Compare to Vancouver on Travel’. Vancouver and Sydney are often grouped together when it comes to comparing cities around the globe. Built upon opposite shores of the Pacific Ocean, residents of both cities lead a very […]
The hidden cost of parking
Have you ever budgeted for the privilege of a car parking space in your apartment block? Probably not, because this cost is usually well hidden into the price of housing, land, construction, and maintenance. Over time this can certainly add up to a large proportion of your rental cheque or purchase price. According to Reinventing […]
Car parks are hot property in Sydney, too
As reported in the Property Observer, a spirited auction for an undercover Potts Point car space fetched $264,000. This price reflected around $10,000 per square metre. In an area that has been described as the toughest in Australia to find a car space – with almost 25,000 residents living in a 1.89 square kilometre, restaurant mecca […]
Car Parking – Where is it headed?
We are proud to announce the release of the 2015 Whitepaper on CBD Car Parking, a joint project between Parking & Traffic Consultants and Colliers International. The focus of this report is the changing landscape of CBD car parking and the resulting challenges and opportunities created in the car parking business. In our CBDs, supply […]
Would London’s Congestion Charging work in Australia?
If you had to pay $20 to enter the CBD by car, would you take public transport instead? Apparently, if London’s experience is translatable, the answer is yes! In 2003, in an attempt to improve the untenable congestion and pollution that plagued Central London, the government introduced “Congestion Charging”. All private and commercial vehicles entering […]
Four days a year stuck in Sydney traffic
The Sydney Morning Herald recently reported a study by the GPS company TomTom which has named Sydney the most congested city in the Antipodes, and ranked it among the world’s worst, coming in at 21st place. Tuesday and Wednesday were determined to be the worst days of the week, and for every half-hour travelled at […]
Cost to build a car park- and more!
Read the 2019 updated version of this post. Occasionally, people inquire as to what it costs to build a car park (this week, in fact). This is not an easy question to answer quickly, as there are many variables to consider — Is it at-grade or multi-storey, CBD or regional, number of bays, which […]
Decluttering Confusing Signage
The City of Sydney has been presented with a motion to simplify parking and traffic signage across the city. As reported in The Daily Telegraph, Cr Jenny Green presented the motion asking the Council’s CEO to investigate what other cities and local councils are doing to simplify signage. Mosman Council is undergoing a plan to […]
School Traffic: Looking at reduction options
In the last of our school traffic series, we are taking a look at some of the school traffic congestion alternatives being put forward locally and overseas. The alternatives relate not only to traffic congestion but also how school communities can encourage more active alternatives for children travelling to and from school. In Mosman, Councillor […]
School Traffic Safety: why won’t parents learn?
In NSW the Police and school principals are appealing to motorists and parents to refrain from dangerous driving behaviour in and around schools. In just the first four days of this school year, there has been a 17% increase in the number of motorists caught speeding and a 24% rise in illegal parking infringements issued […]
School Traffic: How much can Sydney take?
During school terms it is not only traffic which increases but also pressure on public transport systems, localised congestion around schools and particularly at drop off and pick up zones. All of this equates to an added strain on resources such as roads, public transport, police and local government and consequently to a drain on […]
Are more roads the solution to Sydney’s traffic congestion?
By Cristina Lynn Yesterday I attended the first day of the NSW Major Projects Conference and listened with interest about all the infrastructure projects being planned for our state. Whilst the issue of traffic congestion on our roads was mentioned in pretty much all the presentations, there was no information about how this is going […]
Weekend clearways address Sydney’s constant congestion
In a bid to solve weekend traffic congestion around Sydney, the Roads Minister, Duncan Gay, has recently implemented weekend clearways on Victoria Road, with another four major stretches around the city earmarked for the same (Lane Cove Road, Mona Vale Road, Princes Highway and King Georges/Roberts Road). In an editorial piece in the SMH (second […]
CBD parking space rents tipped to rise
An article in the Australian Financial Review last week tipped Sydney parking space rents to be on the rise in 2014 after four years of stagnation. The rate has been steady since 2009 at around $800 per month, yet Sydney is still the most expensive CBD rate in the country. The article is based on […]
2013 from the rear-vision mirror
Hard as it is to accept it, another year is about to end. When we ask ourselves “Where did it go?”, we realise that we have been too busy working to notice the passing of time! Appreciating Our Regular and New Clients 2013 has been a very successful year for us at Parking & Traffic Consultants. […]
Entry point into the Sydney Property Market?
If you’re one of the thousands of Sydneysiders that feel the property market is out of reach, this story from Australian Business Traveller will either depress or delight you! Here’s your chance to own a plot of prime Sydney real estate for only $57,500. Not that long ago (OK, maybe 25 years), that sum might […]