Nundah Parking StudySummary and Recommendations

January 2018

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This report has been produced by:

Transport Planning and Strategy | Brisbane Infrastructure | Brisbane City CouncilBrisbane Square, 266 George St, Brisbane QLD 4000GPO Box 1434, Brisbane QLD 4001

in January 2018.

For inquiries about the contents please contact:

Brisbane City Council, on 3403 8888

Table of ContentsNundah Parking Study..................................................................................................................................................

Introduction...........................................................................................................................................................

The Nundah Parking Study area...................................................................................1

Figure 1: Map of Nundah Parking Study area....................................................................1

Part 1: Analysis of parking-related data................................................................................................................

On-street parking studies – supply, occupancy and duration........................................2

Figure 2: Map showing average duration of stay on a weekday, Nundah Parking Study. .3

Development application data.......................................................................................4

Parking related complaints and infrastructure requests to Council...............................4

Figure 3: Map showing number of parking infringements, Nundah Parking Study (April 2016 to March 2017)...........................................................................................................5

Part 2: Analysis of stakeholder feedback..............................................................................................................

Stakeholder workshop...................................................................................................6

Community survey.........................................................................................................6

Figure 4: Map showing parking related issues and key areas within Nundah Parking Study area..........................................................................................................................7

Key Areas......................................................................................................................8

Conclusions..........................................................................................................................................................

Other items that sit outside the remit of this parking data analysis.............................10

Recommendations..............................................................................................................................................

Next steps...........................................................................................................................................................

Contact................................................................................................................................................................

IntroductionEvery day, Brisbane City Council works with residents, businesses and local communities to take real action on traffic congestion, and managing on-street parking to create a safe and efficient road network.

As part of this, Council has undertaken a parking study in and around Nundah Village to assess current on-street parking and inform future decisions about parking in Nundah Village and its surrounds. The study is in response to ongoing concerns raised by the local community about on-street parking.

The Nundah Parking Study area The Nundah Village precinct provides everyday shopping, convenience and lifestyle facilities to service the local community and is a vibrant hub in which retail and business activity thrive. The Nundah Village precinct benefits from a high volume of residential, business and retail traffic.

Figure 1: Map of Nundah Parking Study area

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Part 1: Analysis of parking-related dataPart one of this summary report provides an outline of parking-related data associated with the Nundah centre.

On-street parking studies – supply, occupancy and duration As demonstrated in the map of the Nundah Parking Study area at Figure 1, the parking study area consisted of a central focus area covering the main village precinct extending from Buckland Road to Robinson Road and between Sandgate Road and the railway line. This area had 516 on-street parking spaces. A core area was identified within the focus area.

Fringe areas of the study were located to the east and west of the focus area. The eastern fringe was located between the railway line and Melton Road. The western fringe was located between Sandgate Road and Park Road. These areas had a total of 1097 on-street parking spaces.

Council undertook observational parking studies on a weekday (Wednesday 31 August 2016) and weekend (Saturday 10 September 2016) to better understand the on-street parking conditions within the study area.

During the weekday study, it was observed that the core area experienced high parking occupancy rates, exceeding 85% for a significant portion of the surveyed day. An 85% occupancy is generally considered to be operating efficiently, and means approximately one in six parking spaces remain available. When occupancies exceed 85% for prolonged periods, finding an available parking space can be difficult for drivers.

The higher occupancies in the core area reflect the higher desirability of these parking locations when compared to the fringe areas located further away from the key retail, business and transport hubs in the centre. The parking occupancies in the fringe areas remained below 85%, peaking at approximately 75% which indicates it is operating efficiently.

The weekend study showed that both the core area and fringe areas experienced lower occupancy rates compared to a weekday, operating with a peak of 70% and 50% respectively.

The duration of stay is an important consideration when managing parking areas. A high turnover of on-street parking in the core area of activity centres ensures that convenient short-term parking remains available for short visits to the centre.

During the weekday study, it was observed that the core area had short durations of stay, mostly less than two hours, transitioning to longer durations of stay in the fringe areas. The weekend study observed that the core area had very short durations of stay, transitioning to longer stays on the fringe, but the difference in the duration of stay between the core area and fringe area on the weekend is less pronounced than that observed during the weekday survey.

The map below at Figure 2 demonstrates the average duration of stay within the Nundah Parking Study area during a weekday.

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Figure 2: Map showing average duration of stay on a weekday, Nundah Parking Study

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Development application data

A review of development applications received between 2006 and 2017 indicates potential for dispersed development across the study area. The majority of off-street parking associated with new developments is in the core area, with some development featuring off-street parking proposed in the fringe areas. This report presumes any off-street parking associated with a development approval would have been assessed in line with the applicable planning scheme.

Parking related complaints and infrastructure requests to Council

Council received 170 complaints regarding 69 locations between April 2016 and March 2017. The majority of complaints were spread across the study area, however Bridge Street, Henchman Street and Nundah Street, all within the focus area, were identified as hotspots.

The majority of complaints related to illegally parked cars; either parking too close to a corner, parking over driveways or parking on yellow lines.

A total of 477 infringements were issued in the area in the same 12-month period. The most common infringements were:

• stopping contrary to official traffic/parking signs for a period longer than the permitted maximum (37%)

• stopping contrary to a no stopping sign (17%) • stopping on a road with a yellow edge line (16%) • stopping on or across a driveway (5%) • stopping less than 10 metres from an intersection without traffic lights (5%).

The types of infrastructure requests made to Council between 2016 and 2017 included requests for yellow line treatments, centre lines, Local Area Traffic Management, pedestrian crossings and reviews of parking restrictions.

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Figure 3: Map showing number of parking infringements, Nundah Parking Study (April 2016 to March 2017)

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Part 2: Analysis of stakeholder feedbackPart two of this summary report provides an analysis of stakeholder feedback gathered via an online survey and face-to-face engagements, and through a stakeholder workshop facilitated by Council.

Stakeholder workshop

Council facilitated a stakeholder workshop at the Nundah Library on 31 May 2017 to discuss on-street car parking in the Nundah centre.

The following topics were discussed:

• non-compliance and inconsistent or inappropriate time limits which could benefit from more enforcement

• opportunities to install marked bays and parking meters and to formalise under-utilised spaces

• opportunities to improve public transport to/through the area and improve pedestrian facilities

• development in the area putting pressure on parking availability• education of the community on compliance, where to park, public and active

transport options, and the coming of age of the Nundah Village and its surrounds.

Community survey

To supplement the on-street parking studies, Council sought feedback from local residents, businesses and visitors to better understand key parking issues in the Nundah centre. A survey was made available online, and feedback was also sought via face-to-face engagement sessions within the Nundah centre.

Council received more than 1400 survey and feedback responses during the consultation period.

Figure 4 provides a summary of the parking related issues identified from the analysis of parking related data and stakeholder inputs.

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Figure 4: Map showing parking related issues and key areas within Nundah Parking Study area

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Key Areas 1. Eton Street

Community feedback for Eton Street identified issues relating to:

• lack of on-street parking along parts of the street, with a need for additional on-street parking

• vehicles exceeding parking time limits, parking over driveways and blocking sight lines.

On-street parking survey (weekday) indicated:

• on-street parking is well utilised, however some capacity remains available for use, with 70-80% occupancy and an average duration of stay of five to six hours.

2. Core area

Community feedback regarding the core area identified issues relating to:

• lack of on-street parking • vehicles exceeding parking time limits and blocking sight lines on Station Street and

Aspinall Street• intersections of Station Street/Boyd Street and Sandgate Road/Buckland Road

identified as problem intersections.

On-street parking survey (weekday) indicated:

• on-street parking is well utilised, with occupancy above 85% in some areas throughout the day

• average durations of stay for Station Street and Sandgate Road were generally less than two hours.

3. Buckland Road

Community feedback for Buckland Road identified issues relating to:

• vehicles exceeding parking time limits and blocking sight lines• the intersection at Buckland Road/Melton Road identified as a problem intersection.

4. Ryans Road

Community feedback for Ryans Road identified issues relating to:

• vehicles exceeding parking time limits, parking over driveways and blocking sight lines.

On-street parking survey (weekday) indicated:

• the area has a relatively long duration of stay, however, some capacity remains available for use in the on-street parking areas.

5. York Street

Community feedback for York Street identified issues relating to:

• parked vehicles blocking sight lines

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• a lack of on-street parking.

On-street parking survey (weekday) indicated:

• the area is used for longer term parking, however some capacity remains available for use, with 70-80% occupancy.

6. Melton Road

Community feedback for Melton Road identified issues relating to:

• parked vehicles blocking sight lines • a lack of on-street parking • intersection of Melton Road/Hows Road identified as requiring an upgrade.

On-street parking survey (weekday) indicated:

• low overall usage with occupancies generally below 70% indicating capacity available for use in the street.

ConclusionsThe on-street survey findings and stakeholder feedback shows that the key parking issue in the area relates to parking availability within the core area on weekdays. The low supply of car parks, coupled with high demand for parking in this area (exceeding 85% occupancy) during the week means that it is difficult to find an available car park in this area, at this time. On weekends, the occupancy rate (less than 85%) indicates that drivers will generally be able to find available car parks.

The occupancy rate in the fringe area (less than 85%) also indicates that drivers will generally be able to find available car parks.

Residents and business owners are generally satisfied with bus stops, taxi facilities, passenger and commercial loading zones and disabled parking available in the area. However, more kerb space and on-street parking of all types (short, medium and long-term) is desired.

Visitors to the area are generally satisfied with bus stops and no opinion was offered from this group regarding taxis, commercial loading or disabled parking. However, visitors would also like more on-street parking of all types (short, medium and long-term) and more passenger loading areas.

Workers who come to the area are satisfied with bus stops, passenger loading zones and short-term parking available in the area. Generally, no opinion was offered from this group regarding taxis or commercial loading zones, however they would like more medium and long-term on-street parking, as well as more disabled parking.

Commuters who responded were generally satisfied with the level of kerb space allocation or offered no opinion in most of the categories.

Issues with specific streets are described in the Key Areas section of this report. Issues that were most frequently mentioned by stakeholders relate to parking in unmarked bays in the fringe areas. These issues include cars parked across driveways, cars parking too close to intersections and driveways (blocking sight lines) and cars being parked inefficiently (taking up

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more than one ‘space’). Infringement data analysed as part of this study supports this perception, with a number of infringements issued for stopping too close to intersections and other infrastructure (e.g. bus stops).

Other items that sit outside the remit of this parking data analysis

• Stakeholder concerns about heavy vehicles in the Nundah centre • Stakeholder concerns about speeding in the Nundah centre• Stakeholder concerns about cycle lanes and infrastructure within the Nundah centre • Stakeholder concerns about safety associated with walking to longer-stay parking

areas from the core area (especially after dark) – e.g. lighting, footpaths, CCTV• Location of bus stops in the Nundah centre

RecommendationsThe following recommendations are put forward as methods to manage parking issues in the Nundah centre.

1. Optimise on-street parking spaces• Identify and communicate parking zones within the Nundah centre - implementation

of signage and line marking to designate and identify these zones• Review extent of marked bays in the area – this could be extended into fringe areas

to better manage the on-street parking in distinct locations• Review extent of no stopping zones (designated by solid yellow lines) within the

Nundah centre. This should be undertaken in conjunction with the marked bay review

• Improve signage to direct and encourage use of parking in convenient off-street parking areas in the Nundah centre

• Review taxi ranks within core area• Encourage the Queensland Government to provide more on-street parking by

optimising under-utilised areas on State owned land

2. Implementing time restrictions to encourage turnover and optimise usage• Review current time restrictions, especially within the core area. Stakeholders have

asked for more short-stay parking within this area (e.g. less than two hours)• Review current time restrictions in the fringe areas

3. Paid parking options to encourage turnover• Introducing paid parking in the area is not recommended at this stage

4. Off-street parking assets• Data analysed as part of this study shows that while demand for parking in the

Nundah centre exceeds supply on weekdays, occupancy rates in the fringe areas are suitable to cater for this parking demand (noting that people would need to walk to access the core area)

• Additional off-street parking assets in the central business and core area, provided by Council, are not deemed to be necessary

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• Nundah Train Station generates a significant amount of parking demand, and the delivery or expansion of a Park’n’Ride facility is the responsibility of the Queensland Government

5. Monitoring and enforcement to ensure that parking is used appropriately• Review Council’s enforcement schedule and process for the Nundah centre to

ensure frequency and coverage is adequate• Review current construction work sites in the Nundah centre to determine if

appropriate permits are in place

6. Travel behaviour change programs to encourage use of alternative modes of transport such as active and public transport

• Explore options to encourage local residents to walk and cycle to the centre• Explore ways to communicate options for active and public transport to the Nundah

centre - possibly through other local marketing activities • Explore ways to encourage people to park in fringe areas and walk to the core area

Next stepsFollowing the finalisation and analysis of the Nundah Parking Study findings, Council has identified a number of priority projects and future opportunities to improve on-street parking in and around the Nundah centre, including:

• implementing marked parking bays in consultation with the local community to the following streets within the focus area: Station Street, Nundah Street and Wood Street

• reviewing the location of accessible parking bays to meet the needs of the community

• reviewing time restrictions and implementing changes to achieve a better balance of short, medium and long-term parking to the following streets within the core area: Station Street, Sandgate Road and Aspinall Street

• reviewing enforcement (general parking and work site permits)• installing line markings around intersections to improve sight lines in Ryans Road,

Eton Street, Melton Road, York Street and Buckland Road, along with the following streets within the core area: Station Street and Aspinall Street

• installing improved parking awareness signage• reviewing taxi ranks on Buckland Road, within the core area, to improve access and

utilisation• investigating the upgrade of the Melton Road and Hows Road intersection, identified

by the community as requiring upgrading• encouraging the Queensland Government to provide more on-street parking by

optimising under-utilised areas on State owned land• continuing to monitor and discuss with Queensland Government their responsibility

to expand the Park’n’Ride facility • monitoring the need for paid parking.

Contact

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For more information relating to the Nundah Parking Study, or to request a copy of the full Nundah Parking Study report, please contact Brisbane City Council on 3403 8888.

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