NEW regulations have come into force in NSW allowing councils to impound boats left on the street.
Announcing the new measures designed to crack down on boat trailers parked on suburban streets, Minister for Local Government, Paul Toole, said that local councils will now be able to impound boats left in the same place for more than three months.
Previously, a boat trailer could be parked indefinitely in areas without parking restrictions unless there were “reasonable grounds” to believe it was abandoned or left unattended.
As a result, Toole said boat trailers being parked in residential areas had been an ongoing source of frustration for residents in high density areas.
“Increasingly, boat owners are using street parking as a long-term parking solution for their boats. This in turn has led to legitimate concerns about the loss of amenity.
“These new measures will allow council officers to specifically target boat trailers which have been parking for considerable periods of time and for which their councils have received complaints,” he said.
More than just boats
Roy Privett, general manager at the Boating Industry Association of NSW & SA, said the BIA had been consulted on this issue over an extended period.
“It is important to appreciate that, following surveys, it was clearly revealed that the vast majority of boat trailers parked on streets are outside the owner’s residential property and that right should be maintained,” he said.
“BIA does not condone the practice of a minority of boat owners parking boat trailers near boat ramps or other convenient areas for extended periods away from their residential address causing inconvenience to other residents and road users. We accept that derelict trailers parked for extended periods on public roads are not in the best interests of the community, and that these vessels reflect badly on recreational boating.”
However, he added that boat-trailers are just one aspect of this issue and the BIA is concerned that recent media and government publications do not mention caravans, box-trailers and mobile billboards.
“In our discussions with government representatives to date, we have understood that the proposed changes would not discriminate against boat trailers. The NSW Government has failed to deliver on all types of trailers and these actions may negatively impact on recreational boating,” he said.
While the NSW Government says it has set aside $5 million to assist local councils and other organisations establish off-street boat trailer parking facilities, Privett believes governments at all levels are failing to support boat owners with alternate storage solutions, especially in high density and congested areas.
Originally published at www.marinebusiness.com.au.
