Sydney’s Barangaroo precinct faces transportation challenges
According to NSW’s Auditor-General, Peter Achterstraat, Sydney’s $6 billion Barangaroo development is at ‘considerable risk’, due to inadequate transport and lower-than-expected developer contributions. Wynyard Railway Station, which is expected to handle up to 63% of the commuters to the waterfront development is likely to reach capacity by 2017. The additional 14,300 predicted commuters won’t be […]
Congestion pricing – is it an option?
The Victorian Government has confirmed that it is not considering a congestion tax for Melbourne’s gridlocked roads, despite a submission by Acil Tasman (an economic consulting firm) proposing charging cars and trucks each time they enter the CBD and inner suburbs, saying the money could be used to improve roads and public transport. According to […]
Bicycle usage: increasing in Australia and US but declining in China
Research released by IBISWorld estimates that the Australian bicycle industry will grow by 17 per cent over the next five years, starting with the sale of 1.2 million bikes this year. The average cost of each bicycle is $927. Of all Australian cities, Canberra has the highest percentage of regular riders, with 13 per cent […]
Parking & Traffic Consultants once again at the World Parking Symposium
Cristina Lynn, our Managing Partner, will be attending her third World Parking Symposium which this year is being held in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada between 26 – 29 June. The World Parking Symposium’s title is: “Why does Parking & Transportation Matter? The Future of Service Delivery in the 21st Century” and will address selected issues in urban […]
Traffic management inspiration from New York
This week, we came across a demonstration of how one particular New York intersection is both dysfunctional and more than a little dangerous. For his master’s thesis at the School of Visual Arts in New York City, Ron Gabriel created a campaign called 3-Way Street to examine how “pedestrians jaywalking, cyclists running red lights and […]
Google Wallet’s potential effect on parking industry infrastructure
Google launched a product this week called ‘Google Wallet’ which uses ‘Near Field Communication’ (NFC) technology to enable secure credit card payments using a mobile phone. With Google Wallet, customers will be able to add their existing credit cards to the platform. Google Wallet can be locked via multiple levels of security, including a phone […]
Why is Melbourne’s bike sharing scheme underperforming?
After one year of operation, the Melbourne bike sharing scheme is running into trouble, with apparent underutilisation and rider numbers falling short of projections. A number of issues have been identified as possible reasons for the lack of enthusiasm – including awkward pick-up points, a wet summer, compulsory helmet laws (with riders being forced to […]
How many parking spaces are enough if your development is in Wynyard?
The developers of a new building at Sydney’s Wynyard station are clashing with the City of Sydney over parking requirements. According to an article published by the Daily Telegraph, the developers want 177 parking spaces for the 3,500 employee capacity building, claiming that the building needs that number of spaces to attract high-profile tenants. On […]
…as India also considers their car parking requirements
The Wayfinding Forum’s ‘shadow author’ recently visited India on a fact finding mission to examine the parking situation in Mumbai. Both the photo above and the video below were captured by our correspondent whilst on location. As you can see, both traffic and parking are growing problems in the city, and we expect that this […]
Barbara Chance – a worthy parking consultant
In more news from Pittsburgh, the IPI recognized three parking professionals who have made outstanding contributions to the profession. Parking Consultant Dr. Barbara Chance and University of California/Irvine’s Ronald Fleming shared the Parking Professional of the Year award. You will no doubt remember that Barbara was one of the speakers at the Australian Parking Association’s […]
Interesting trends revealed by Parking Industry Survey
Also released at the IPI Conference were the results of the 2011 “Emerging Trends in Parking” survey of its members to examine the evolution of the car parking industry. The survey revealed that while parking professionals are finding increased pressure to boost parking revenue, significant trends centre on demand for sustainable parking solutions and advances […]
Sydney car parking rates set to rise
Sydney City Council have released detailed income forecasts showing that on-street parking costs are set to increase from $6 to $7 per hour, delivering an additional $1.9 million next financial year, alongside plans to increase revenue from car parks by up to 30 per cent to $58.8 million in 10 years. According to a news […]
Green power and electric vehicle charging stations
Whilst we have commented on the benefits of electric vehicles on the Wayfinding Forum for some time, recent studies are muddying the waters as to the effectiveness of the technology. Car maker Audi has examined the energy output of the entire chain of powering the vehicles – from power station to the car’s emissions – […]
Federal Government launches first national urban policy
The Federal Government’s first national urban policy was launched yesterday by the Infrastructure and Transport Minister Mr. Albanese. The policy, called “Our Cities, Our Future” underlines the relationship between funding for projects with specific criteria relating to productivity and sustainability. The areas in which the Government intends to get involved in includes water, rail, urban […]
Sydney road congestion IS getting worse!
Australian Insurer NRMA has surveyed 1,100 businesses that run vehicle fleets in the city, finding that 80 per cent believe that congestion has worsened in the past year. In addition, 62 per cent of businesses surveyed believe that the roads themselves have worsened while 78 per cent believe that it is taking them longer to […]
Americans are working to feed their cars
Cycling enthusiast James Schwartz published an article recently on the cost of owning a car in America. According to his findings on the average rates of car ownership, when compared to the median household income, the average employee needs to work around 2.9 hours every day, just to pay for their car. In addition to […]
Manly Council – great parking developments!
Manly Council (in Sydney’s Northern Beaches) announced last week plans to build a two storey car park underneath Manly Oval, as part of a plan to reduce the number of cars in the village area. The 800-space underground car park will allow Council to demolish two other at grade car parks with a combined capacity […]
Brisbane short term car parking costs on the rise
According to a report released this week by Queensland Insurance company RACQ, Brisbane’s short-term parking prices are now the second most expensive in Australia, after Sydney. The average cost across the car parks in the Sydney study area was $25.83 for 1 hour compared with $21.65 in Brisbane and $15.98 in Melbourne for the same […]
How much parking is enough?
Following the lead of Sydney and Melbourne Councils recently reducing the minimum parking requirements in both residential and commercial buildings, Wollongong City Council announced last week that they plan to reduce minimum parking requirements in the CBD by almost 20 per cent. The Illawarra Mercury reported that the first instalment of a three-stage review of […]
Does the uniform make the man?
A pensioner in Collingwood, Victoria, has challenged her parking fine after an ‘unidentified passer by’ photographer her car whilst parked in a no standing zone. Her complaint is based not on the fine, but on the fact that the parking officer was not wearing a uniform or driving a marked car. Yarra City Council said […]
Making room for bicycles on parking spaces
The public sector’s push for more bicycle infrastructure continues. With bike sharing programs going crazy worldwide, and the cycle lanes in New York and Sydney generating significant debate and press, Victoria’s Moreland Council is also taking steps to supporting this sustainable means of transport. Moreland Council has divided a car parking space on Victoria Street […]
New car parking technology for City of Melbourne
On April 20th the City of Melbourne formally approved a $5.48 million project to modernise the way parking is managed across the city which had been unveiled earlier this year. The new technology, which will be rolled out between 1 July and 30 October this year, includes the installation of in-ground sensors in more than […]
San Francisco switches to demand-based parking fees
The implementation of demand-based parking fees (on city streets and public parking garages), which is an integral part of the SFpark project in San Francisco, is starting on April 21. Sensors installed at each parking space will track where parking is available in real time and uploaded to signs and smartphone applications. According to the […]
Davis Langdon’s Construction Sentiment Monitor update April 2011
The April release has seen the Sentiment Index drop by three points from the previous release in September 2010, down to an index score of 60. Key findings from this quarter’s Sentiment Monitor include: workload expectations dip into negative access to finance remains greatest obstacle tightening of competition Health and Civil & Resource sectors most […]
Do CBD tenants still want parking spaces?
According to an article published in last weekend’s Sydney Morning Herald, the demand for CBD car spaces is decreasing and being replaced by increased demand for shower facilities as more people either cycle to work, or take public transport. The article claims that this trend is putting pressure on developers to redesign the basement areas […]
Sydney’s mayor says that the critics are wrong on cycle lanes
An article this week in the Sydney Morning Herald summarises a lecture delivered by the Lord Mayor at the University of NSW on Wednesday April 6th about the city’s cycle lanes, currently in construction along several key corridors to and through the CBD. She argues that NSW has been held back due to little interest in […]
Issues regarding safety in car parks
A car with its driver fell six stories in Melbourne CBD on Monday, after it drove through the safety rail at a car park off Anthony Street, between Elizabeth and Queen Streets. Despite the huge fall, the driver, a 41-year-old woman, was found alive, hanging sideways from her seatbelt. The car fell into the side […]
No Parking Meters Party in NSW state elections
Speaking of elections, we noted the advent of a new party on the NSW State election ballot forms – the No Parking Meters Party. Our investigation into the party has shown that whilst they were originally conceived as a single-policy party, a ‘groundswell of support’ led them to put forward 18 candidates for the NSW […]
Useful tips for reviewing Councils’ parking strategies
The recent volume and variety of articles appearing on the media locally and internationally with regards to parking management, parking strategies and revenue generation has caused us to stop and think about these important issues. On-street parking controls are often introduced by local councils to improve management of available spaces as a response to regular […]
New York’s bike lanes generate heated debate
New York’s current bicycle lane installation program is receiving a significant amount of press. A post to the New Yorker blog by economist writer John Cassidy provides the drivers’ perspective: ‘when the city introduces a bike lane on a given street, it removes dozens of parking places’. His concern is that that elimination of on […]