Infrastructure the key to Dutch cycling success
In the majority of western countries, car culture has grown at the expense of cycling, according to Streetsblog. But not in Holland. The Dutch chose to develop infrastructure that supported and enhanced the safety and convenience of riding a bike. According to A view from the cycle path, contributor David Hembrow, “Dutch people are empowered to […]
Will infrastructure planning be compromised?
Australian planners may face working without the benchmark information and guidance supplied by the Australian Census. On 18th February the Australian Federal Government announced that it was considering abandoning the Australian Census in favour of smaller sample surveys. The Australian Census has been held every five years since 1911 with the last census being held […]
2014 Australia and New Zealand Green Building Market Report
Photo Credit: Sourceable.net The 2014 Green Building market report for Australia and New Zealand has just been released. Between March and May 2014, 133 developers, architects, builders and subcontractors in Australia and 110 in New Zealand provided feedback on their views and experiences with green building. Findings include: In Australia: 90% of respondents have been […]
NZ trials new pedestrian crossing technology
It’s one of those things that makes you wonder….”why didn’t anyone think of that before?” As reported in the Otago Times, Invercargill is the first in the world to trial a new technology for pedestrian crossings. Simple as it sounds, it allows the would-be-crosser to press the button and then activate a longer crossing cycle, […]
Auckland tolls to fund infrastructure crisis
Auckland is easily New Zealand’s largest city, and like many big cities it is suffering from a dearth of roads and transport infrastructure. Conservatively, traffic congestion is costing the city more than $1B in productivity per annum, a figure that is growing. In a high level report released recently “Funding Auckland’s Transport Future”, we’re told […]
Quest to improve cycling safety in Otago NZ
Two recent deaths of cyclists on the streets of Dunedin have prompted councillors to investigate options for rejigging parking and traffic management protocols on some of the city’s busiest thoroughfares. The Otago Daily Times reported requests have been made to council and the NZ Transport Agency to investigate the option of increasing parking limits for […]
CBD parking tax win for New Zealand businesses
New Zealand PM, Mr John Key Meanwhile in New Zealand, business organisations and unions have claimed victory after the Prime Minister backed away from a government proposal to introduce a fringe benefit tax on car parks provided to employees as part of their remuneration. The tax on inner-city car parks in Auckland and Wellington drew […]
Parking and Traffic Consultants – 2012 year in review
2012 has been another eventful year for PTC. Many new clients joined the prestigious names in our portfolio, including Perth Airport, Health Infrastructure, Adelaide University and Leichhardt Council. Many other previous clients engaged us to do new work. Just to give you an idea, during the year we worked for these airports: Adelaide, Gold Coast, […]
A year of ‘Parking and Traffic’ blogs in review
Feel like the year has passed you by too? If you’ve been too busy to stay on top of the parking and traffic industry news every week – never fear! Here is our annual round-up of the highs and lows, and headline-making stories from 2012. Parking and policy in Australia This year saw Parking & […]
13th Australian Parking Convention is a resounding success
Following in the steps of the November 2010 Convention, the Parking Association of Australia held its 13th event at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre earlier this week. The event was characterised by a high level of local and international speakers that had the delegates particularly riveted to their seats. The exhibiton, in Hall 6 […]
Car Park Façades are making design news!
It seems that some of the more aspirational car park exterior designs around the world are starting to see recognition in the mainstream commercial design world. An article recently published in Commercial Design Trends magazine (see their website at trendsideas.com) explores how car park façades are being used to disguise and shelter car park buildings […]
Car park signage – the good, the bad and the ugly
One of the areas that is often overlooked or taken for granted in car parks is signage. From exterior signage that attracts customers, to interior signage that helps drivers and pedestrians navigate quickly and easily through a car park, the importance of good signage to a positive customer experience is crucial. We would like to […]
Shared spaces put squeeze on Auckland parking
Car parking faces a continuing squeeze in downtown Auckland streets, following a 20 per cent reduction in spaces over the last five years. Auckland Transport says 843 street parking spaces have gone since 2007, leaving 3417 bays compared with 4260 previously. According to the NZ Herald, the trend is set to continue as more CBD […]
Free parking under threat for NZ workers
A report prepared by the New Zealand Transport Agency has recommended that the government investigate changing the fringe benefit tax to include employer-subsidised parking. The proposed additional tax is being considered to address concerns that employees are undermining attempts to ‘encourage more efficient commuting behaviour’. According to Stuff.co.nz, more than half of the country’s workforce […]
Airport car parking prices and performance
According to a recently released Productivity Commission draft report, Australia’s five major airports have been found not to be misusing their market power in setting car parking and land access rates. The report, entitled ‘Economic Regulation of Airport Services’, differed from the findings of the report into airport parking prices by the Australian Competition and […]
Christchurch’s retail restoration post-earthquake
Christchurch’s rebuilding process is underway, with one retail hub, the Palms shopping centre, announcing a September 8 re-opening date. Following the smaller earthquake on June 13, further damage has been done to the centre and more remedial work has been required, including re-checking the car park and the centre columns, flooring and plastering repairs, travelator […]
Card security breached in Queenstown
Last week, a number of credit card scams hit Queenstown (New Zealand), with the Man Street car park the focus of the breach of security. Customers who had used their credit cards for payments at the car park were phoned by their card companies and notified that fraudulent transactions had taken place later in the […]
New Zealand asks FBI to help nail hackers
PCI recently wrote about the theft of credit card details from payment machines at the Downtown Car Park in central Auckland in November (see previous blog posts ‘Auckland Downtown credit card scam and PCI compliance ’ and ‘Another reason to be PCI compliant’). The victims of the scam, which had gone undetected for some time, […]
Auckland Downtown credit card scam and PCI compliance
Parking Today’s technology editor, Pete Goldin, posted this week about PCI compliance – the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard.The PCI Data Security Standard is a multifaceted security standard that includes requirements for security management, policies, procedures, network architecture, software design and other critical protective measures. You can read more about the twelve core requirements […]
Is New Zealand ready for a parking levy?
Following many blogs relating to the issue of parking levies in some cities of Australia, we came across a post on the Auckland Transport Blog, discussing the Auckland CBD Rail Tunnel, and what means might be implemented to fund this massive infrastructure project. The author proposes that Auckland should consider a flat rate parking tax […]
Book your car park days before you fly!
New Zealand’s Wellington Airport has just introduced an online car park booking service, offering customers the ability to pre-book their space long before arriving at the airport. The benefits for the customer include not just knowing that their car space is reserved, but also that a discount is available, supporting corporate travelers seeking the ‘best […]
The most dangerous profession on Earth
If you thought that going to fight the Taliban in Afghanistan was dangerous, think again. The Courier Mail reported on January 6 of yet another incident of “parking ticket” rage, when a man was charged with assault, accused of trying to run down two Brisbane City Council parking inspectors in the CBD after they gave […]
Congestion tax?
The recommendations of a taskforce established to close the ‘pay gap’ between New Zealand and Australia’s productivity levels by 2025 were published in New Zealand this week (our source is from the NZ Herald).The ‘2025 Taskforce’, headed by Don Brash, provided a range of recommendations on income tax, student loans and superannuation. Interestingly, it also […]