By Charlene Macaulay
Desperate drivers are resorting to parking along one of Werribee’s busiest arterials due to a lack of proper carparking spaces.
In recent weeks, a number of drivers have taken to parking on the side of the road along Princes Highway, between the access road to Wyndham council’s civic centre and Princes Court. It is believed that most, if not all, of the cars belong to Wyndham council staff.
The cars parked along the Princes Highway are not breaking the law, according to the council and Westgate Highway Patrol.
Wyndham council acting chief executive Stephen Thorpe said there were no signs to indicate that cars could not park along the section of the Princes Highway.
Mr Thorpe said the council had had “ongoing communication with staff about the importance of complying with parking rules in and around the civic centre”.
“We’re currently assessing ways to maximise parking availability at the civic centre and we are continuing to encourage staff to consider alternative modes of transport, such as car pooling and active travel.”
Westgate Highway Patrol unit commander Keith Kissack confirmed that the cars were not parked illegally.
“Our main focus is on reducing road trauma [and] these vehicles do not present as a significant risk to other road users or themselves directly from the parking in these circumstances,” Senior Sergeant Kissack said.
Meanwhile, a group of medical practitioners located along the Princes Highway have lodged a petition calling on Wyndham council to provide its employees with adequate parking so that they no longer need to park along the service road fronting their clinics.
