logo
Driver's 'dishonest and selfish' act on Aussie road sparks council investigation

Driver's 'dishonest and selfish' act on Aussie road sparks council investigation

Yahoo08-05-2025

The divisive move has highlighted an all too common problem on Australia's roads .
A bollard appearing to reserve a parking space in front of a row of houses in Sydney has sparked anger Source: Reddit/WagsPup
Anyone who drives through one of Australia's major cities will know how difficult finding somewhere to park can be — especially for local residents.
While it's tempting to flout the road rules simply to find somewhere to stop, one Aussie driver has been blasted for appearing to reserve a space on a popular stretch of road just minutes from the Sydney CBD.
An image taken on Forbes Street in the busy inner-city suburb of Darlinghurst, on Wednesday, shows an orange bollard placed in the middle of a parking space on the street outside a row of terraced homes.
The angry resident who snapped the scene told Yahoo News the move was "dishonest, arrogant, entitled and selfish" and questioned how such an act is even allowed.
ADVERTISEMENT
"I'm a local resident that has to deal with similar parking challenges," they explained, adding that it "doesn't mean you do a con job to benefit yourself."
Parking in the area is restricted to residents with permits and visitors who can stay for just one hour.
Council investigates 'dishonest' parking move
A City of Sydney spokesperson confirmed council has launched an investigation after being contacted by Yahoo. "Reserving parking spaces, or placing items on a roadway to reserve a space, is not permitted within the City of Sydney for private parking purposes," the spokesperson said.
Those wishing to reserve a space for construction, events, or film shoots must apply to the City of Sydney. The spokesperson encouraged the public to contact council.
"We have not received any recent complaints about the use of a parking space on that part of Forbes Street. We will now investigate the matter," the spokesperson said.
Drivers called out a resident for reserving limited street parking with orange traffic cones in Leichhardt, located in Sydney's inner west Source: Facebook
Have you witnessed a frustrating parking scene outside your home? Contact News Editor Courtney Greatrex at courtney.greatrex@yahooinc.com.
Aussies' extreme measures to secure parking spaces
It's not the first time that extreme measures have been taken to secure an inner-city parking space. Last year, one driver infuriated locals by allegedly reserving a space near their home for "months" with the use of orange traffic cones.
ADVERTISEMENT
Another Melbourne resident exposed a dodgy tactic by her neighbour, who was asked her to move her car before blocking off the area with traffic cones. Frustratingly, her Jeep Patriot is too big to fit in the garage under her apartment complex, meaning street parking is her only option.
'There is limited parking as it is,' Melbourne woman Parker told Yahoo News Australia.
Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.
You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Modii Inc. Announces Successful Capital Raise to Accelerate Smart Mobility Solutions Across the U.S.
Modii Inc. Announces Successful Capital Raise to Accelerate Smart Mobility Solutions Across the U.S.

Yahoo

time2 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Modii Inc. Announces Successful Capital Raise to Accelerate Smart Mobility Solutions Across the U.S.

Backed by EVP, the investment fuels Modii's expansion in the digital transformation of parking and mobility infrastructure. DENVER, June 9, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Modii Inc., a U.S. based smart mobility software company, today announced the successful close of its seed round, led by Australia-based venture firm EVP. The raise comes amid rapid adoption of Modii's SaaS-based cloud platform by major cities, universities and parking operators, guiding the digitization and optimization of their transportation infrastructure. About Modii's PlatformModii provides a centralized platform for the analysis and optimization of parking and mobility infrastructure. The cloud-based platform aggregates real-time data on the utilization and revenue of existing parking assets and leverages AI-driven analytics to predict future demand, enabling operators to improve user experience, asset efficiency, and operational decision-making. In the US, the company now manages over a million parking spaces for customers including multiple 2026 FIFA World Cup host cities and several of the most visited cities in the US. University clients include half of the ten largest universities by daily attendance in the US. Modii's live environments can be explored at Use of FundsWith this investment, Modii plans to expand operations, enhance its engineering and product capabilities, and grow customer delivery and success teams in key U.S. markets. "This capital raise validates both our vision and our execution," said Mark Frumar, CEO of Modii. "We're now positioned to scale innovation that directly improves daily mobility experiences and infrastructure for communities across the U.S." With the investment, EVP Principal, Mark Velik will join the Board of Modii. "Modii has built a world-class product with clear customer demand," said Mark Velik, Principal at EVP. "We're excited to support their continued innovation in this long overlooked but essential sector." About ModiiModii is guiding the shift towards smart parking and mobility solutions to help create smarter, greener, and safer cities, universities, and communities around the world. Modii provides customers with real data on the usage of their parking infrastructure to enable data-led decision-making. The foundation data helps communities achieve increased accessibility and connectivity, the reduction of congestion, emissions, and improved asset management. Modii recently completed a 2-year research study in partnership with the Department of Civil Engineering at The University of Texas at Arlington to test the impact and effectiveness of Modii's platform and parking guidance solution. Grant-funded by the North Central Texas Council of Governments, the study found Modii's Platform provides the following improvements to parking operations: Increased revenue by an average of 8.5% in monitored parking zones. Reduced parking violations by up to 60%, improved driver behavior and promoted self-regulation by drivers. Lowered enforcement costs through the analysis of parking trends aiding focused patrols. Guided strategic refinements to parking policy, parking operations and enforcement with the help of measured evidence. Website: contact: hello@ About EVPEVP is an early stage venture capital firm focused on B2B software companies. EVP currently has over $250m under management across a portfolio of over 40 software companies. Based in Sydney, Australia, EVP invests entirely in B2B SaaS and marketplace companies across a broad range of industries. Companies include the likes of Ignition, Deputy, Shippit, Lumary, Hnry and View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Modii Inc. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data

Calls for change as deteriorating roads expose big 'risk' to Aussies
Calls for change as deteriorating roads expose big 'risk' to Aussies

Yahoo

time7 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Calls for change as deteriorating roads expose big 'risk' to Aussies

Aussie road users are growing increasingly fed up with the deteriorating state of the tarmac across the country. New data reveals reports of sub-par roads and bike paths have tripled in the past three years, with "no signs of slowing down". While the number of reports correlates with an uptick in Aussies opting to travel on their bikes, the state of roads poses an "increasing risk" to the wellbeing of cyclists, according to Danny Gorog, CEO of council reporting app Snap Send Solve. Cycling advocacy group Bicycle NSW's CEO Peter McLean has called on authorities to pay attention to the complaints, telling Yahoo it's critically important "all three tiers" of government acknowledge that there are more cyclists than ever on the roads. "We need to evolve and react to managing our assets and infrastructure more appropriately," he said. "People want better, more consistent infrastructure, and where they're not seeing it, they are reporting it," he said. Since 2020, cycling has seen a "massive uptake", according to McLean. Now, over five million Australians are riding a bike every week, particularly with the advent of e-bikes. With that, has come a rise in complaints on the state of infrastructure meant to serve cyclists. Last year, there was a "record-breaking" 5,235 reports of issues in bike paths including crumbling tarmac, regular debris in the way, as well as overgrown nature strips across the country, according to Snap Send Solve data. 2025 looks like it's going to be even worse with 3,153 reports already recorded between January and May this year. "This rapid growth strongly suggests that conditions on the ground are deteriorating year over year," Gorog told Yahoo News Australia. While the Snap Send Solve app itself is increasing in popularity among responsible citizens, he believes the rise in complaints is "unlikely" to be explained simply by reporting behaviour alone. "It signals worsening infrastructure conditions, poor repairs, ageing bike lanes, and potentially inadequate maintenance cycles," he said. He warns the current pace of deterioration could "undermine broader mobility goals and pose increasing risks to cyclists." Gorog hopes the insights will guide smarter investments and ongoing upgrades from authorities. 🚨 Drivers warned major road rule change with $961 fines 'just weeks' away 📸 Cyclist's heated exchange with driver over 'deliberate' roadside act 👮 'Unbelievable' moment cyclist swerves in front of driver draws police response It's not just the quality of the roads putting cyclists at risk, but also fellow road users like car drivers. A disproportionate amount of crashes involve cyclists on Australian roads despite them being a small percentage of overall road users. Last year, cyclist deaths jumped from 34 in 2023 to 38 in 2024, an 11.8% increase, with motor vehicles involved in the majority of crashes. Footage shared earlier this year shows a scary near-miss between a driver and a cyclist in the Melbourne suburb of Brunswick. Cyclist Rory Meister told Yahoo News he thought it was "absurd" the driver didn't see him despite having flashing lights on his bike. He said incidents with drivers are alarmingly frequent. McLean previously told Yahoo education and awareness are the first port of call for improving safety for cyclists. "Fundamentally, we need better awareness at an early stage of when people are getting their licenses," he said. "There's lots of great drivers out there and we just need to equalise everyone on the road." Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@ You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.

Number of council-owned disabled parking spaces dwarfed by blue-badge holders
Number of council-owned disabled parking spaces dwarfed by blue-badge holders

Yahoo

time10 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Number of council-owned disabled parking spaces dwarfed by blue-badge holders

The number of council-managed blue parking spaces is significantly dwarfed by the number of blue badge holders, new data shows. According to a study from Swindon Borough Council has 69 dedicated blue badge parking bays, but there are 15,641 blue badge holders. This means that for every 227 permit holders, there is one blue badge space in council-managed areas. According to Swindon Borough Council, the report only focuses on dedicated spaces that belong the the council, but misses the others available in the town. They said: 'To suggest there are only 69 dedicated blue badge parking bays in Swindon is not the case as it ignores all the spaces in supermarkets, private car parks and out of town shopping centres. Disruption after unexpected road closure surprises residents and council 'Waterfalls' spotted on iconic town centre landmark 'left to rot' Five guilty of GBH after 'excessive' defence against knifeman in brawl 'It is also worth noting that, in Swindon, blue badge holders can park in any one of the 876 spaces in our surface level car parks that are not allocated for blue badge parking for as long as they want - for free. 'Holders can also park in a resident bay with their badge on display, with no time restriction, as well as limited waiting bays. And, providing their badge and clock is displayed, blue badge holders can park on double yellow lines for three hours.' According to the same report, there are "3.2 million blue badge permit holders in the UK, in comparison with 63,000 local authority blue badge parking bays". It also seems that the demand for accessible parking is increasing, with there being a 31% increase between 2022 and 2024 for new applications. During the 2022-2024 period, there were nearly 250,000 applications rejected. In England, there are 43,604 parking bays for blue badge holders but 2,635,428 permit holders. Rhydian Jones, motoring expert at car insurance, said: "Blue badge parking spaces are essential for millions of drivers across the UK—but our latest research shows how easily that system struggles. "This is especially highlighted when there isn't enough availability, and other drivers take advantage of the spaces. 'Shockingly, for every one blue badge parking bay in the UK, there are 52 permit holders who need access to it. "If you're using a blue badge space without needing one, even for just a few minutes, you could be stopping someone from being able to work, shop, or attend a medical appointment. "It's clear that more needs to be done—both to increase the number of accessible bays and to prevent misuse. "And if you're caught using a blue badge space without a permit, you could receive a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) costing between £70 and £100."

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store