Ash Bolt
New data compiled by EnjoyTravel has revealed Geelong has some of the highest average on-street parking costs in the country, with residents paying more for parking locally than in several capital cities.
Geelong was ranked the seventh most expensive city to park, with motorists charged an average of $3.20 per hour for parking.
The rate was significantly cheaper than Melbourne – the most expensive city in the country at $7 per hour – but more expensive than Brisbane, Canberra, Hobart and Darwin.
However the study showed Geelong had one of the cheapest paid car parks in the country.
The data revealed Market Square’s fee of $1 per hour was the second cheapest paid car parking in and around the CBDs of any of Australia’s cities.
No Geelong car parks were in the top 15 most expensive in the country.
For people parking overnight, the Promenade car park on Corio Street is one of the cheapest in Australia at $6.40 for 24 hours, coming in fifth.
At the other end of the scale, Market Square is one of the most expensive places to park for 24 hours, with the $84 fee the sixth highest in the country.
EnjoyTravel used Parkopedia and council websites to compare midweek parking rates across central locations in each of Australia’s largest cities.
The City of Greater Geelong’s annual report showed it collected $3.1 million in parking fees during the 2020-21 financial year, however it lost a further estimated $3.4 million from its introduction of temporary free parking as a COVID-19 pandemic recovery measure.
The City will again introduce free parking in the CBD from tomorrow until the end of December in two-hour on-street parking spaces as a COVID-19 recovery measure.
