State Government to deliver better outcomes for City with changes to Perth Parking Management Act

• Government has approved changes to the Perth Parking Management Act 1999
• Changes will allow more flexibility in how Perth Parking Levy funds can be administered
• Act and accompanying policies were introduced to limit the growth of parking bays and cars travelling to the CBD
  

The State Government has today announced plans to change the Perth Parking Management Act 1999.

The Act and accompanying policies, including the Perth Parking Levy, were introduced to help mitigate congestion created by people travelling into the city by car.

Since the introduction, the Act and accompanying policies have been successful in their intended aim of reducing the number of cars travelling into the CBD.

When the policy was introduced, roughly 66 per cent of trips into the CBD were made by car, which has now reduced to around 45 per cent. In the same period, the percentage of people using public transport to travel into the CBD has increased from 30 per cent to 45 per cent.

In recent years, the levy has helped fund a number of key projects, including the Roe Street Enhancement, expansion of CAT services to Kings Park, Matagarup Bridge and UWA, and the Causeway Pedestrian and Cycling Bridge.

The current legislation and policy restrict the use of levy funds to transport projects within the City of Perth, but the Government intends to change that to include any initiative or project that delivers positive social and economic outcomes and that activate the Perth central area.

Other changes include:

• expanding the areas where the Perth Parking Levy funds can be administered, given that boundary changes over the past 20 years mean a number of other inner-city local governments now manage land within the Perth parking management area; and
• greater flexibility and powers for the levy to be waived in extraordinary circumstances.

The City of Perth forecasts showed it would collect around $70 million this financial year from parking revenue, with a significant majority of their carparks located on State Government land.

Since forming Government in 2017, the McGowan Government has only increased the Perth Parking Levy by 6.7 per cent. This is compared to the previous Liber-National Government who increased the Levy by 72 per cent in their last five years in Government.

This financial year the State Government will spend nearly $2 billion on public transport operations, and is currently investing billions on the biggest ever expansion to the State's public transport network through METRONET. A record $347 million is also being invested on an expansion of our State's cycling network.

These investments are playing a critical role in getting more people to and from the city on public transport.

Comments attributed to Transport Minister Rita Saffioti:

"A review and update of the Perth Parking Management Act was well overdue, given there has been no substantial change since it was introduced nearly 25 years ago.

"The reality is, the Act and the accompanying policy were introduced to reduce congestion and limit the number of cars travelling into the CBD, and while it has been very successful in doing that, the policy settings on how the funds collected through the Perth Parking Levy can be used have always been restrictive.

"For example, we wanted to fund more of the Causeway Cycling and Pedestrian Bridge project through levy funds, but because of the restrictive nature of the legislation and policy, we could only fund $24 million, which is around half of the State's contribution.

"By broadening the scope, we can better plan for how the funds can be used and administered, and invest in a wider range of projects and initiatives that deliver positive economic and social outcomes to the community.

"It will also allow us to deal with situations where significant cultural assets like the Perth Concert Hall, which has been under the management of the City of Perth, have been allowed to be run down and forced the closure of some sections of the car park, despite the City collecting millions of dollars in revenue from the car park itself.

"Broadening the scope beyond transport projects also makes sense, given the significant amount of investment we are already making to expand our public transport network, which is going to help more people than ever before get to and from the city.

"We also intend to expand the areas where funds can be administered to include other inner-city local governments that now manage land within the Perth Parking Management area."

Comments attributed to Perth MLA John Carey:

"Our State Government has driven the $1.7 billion Perth City Deal - a record investment to transform our city, and attract more people to live, work and play in the CBD.

"We want more people to call our city home - and so it makes sense to increase the scope of what the Perth Parking Levy can fund beyond just public transport to improving cultural, recreation and community amenities.

"People attract people, so any investment to improve the vibrancy, life and activation of our Perth CBD should be welcomed."

Minister's office - 6552 5500