The City of Melbourne manages 30,000 on-street car parking spaces within the municipality.
Around 12,000 of these spaces are fee parking spaces managed by 4000 parking devices (including parking meters and ticket machines).
Restricted parking
The time limits associated with the parking areas are indicated on the signs. Always check the signs for time restrictions before leaving your parked vehicle.
The purpose of restricted parking is to ensure regular traffic turnover in the intrest of fairness to all users. When the allowable parking time expires, the vehicle must be moved.
If you are in the central city between the hours of 6.30am and 6.30pm, (as in any time limited area), it is prohibited to continue adding coins to a parking machine, or purchase additional parking tickets, in order to stay longer than the allowed parking time as indicated on signs.
If you start parking at or after 6.30pm you will be able to pay until 8.30pm without exceeding the 1 hour time limit as it ends at 7.30pm. However, if you park before 6.30pm you may only park for the permitted time of one hour.
Please note the following:
- This does not apply to 30 minute parking spaces (1/2 P), you must comply the time limit;
- A parking session begins at the time the vehicle stops in the parking space, not the time a fee is paid; and
- Signs may change throughout the evening to manage or facilitate traffic requirements, such as taxi zones, etc.
- You must ensure that you read all the panels on the sign and comply with the relevant restrictions.
Should you have any further questions regarding parking restrictions, please call the City of Melbourne on 03 9658 9658.
Credit card facilities
Some parking machines provide credit card facilities as an additional option to paying with coins.
There may be times when even though the machine is working correctly it does not accept a payment by credit card. If this occurs and the option of paying with coins is still available you must pay using coins.
As with the purchase of any goods or services, just because your preferred method of payment is not available it does not remove your obligation to pay when a method is available.
Faulty parking meters or ticket machines
If you experience any difficulties with parking machines, please call the City of Melbourne on 1300 555 130 or send an SMS to 0428 555 123 and provide:
- the ID number of the machine
- your vehicle registration number
- a brief description of the machine fault.
Please be aware that even if a parking meter or ticket machine is out of order, you are still required to comply with the time restrictions in the area.
Vehicles need to be relocated to another area after the perscribed time limit has expired.