Ask RiotACT: Parking issues at O'Connor shops

Ring ACT Government. They can fix anything. Just look at Northbourne Ave

wildturkeycanoe said :

It doesn’t matter if you can’t or don’t want to do either of the above, be it for health reasons, time constraints or convenience. People won’t care that you have a shopping trolley full of groceries or there is a tropical monsoon bearing down on Canberra, those are apparently not valid reasons to be selfish or entitled enough to drive your own car to the local shops.

There have been the same number of parks at these shops for a long, long time and the world has continued to revolve around the sun without too many issues. What you are basically saying is that because more people these days want to take their car to the shops for everything they have to do there now, rather than EVER take the option to walk, ride, bus, the infrastructure at the precinct should change to suit the people, rather than the people being flexible and adaptable. If it was only those people who NEEDED to use their cars who brought them to the shops, there would be plenty of car spaces, as there often was.

However it is clear that people feel they are entitled to take their car to everything they do and are entitled to a park at the front door of the venue they wish to visit and therefore the car parks are always full and those who actually need them, rather than just want them, are the ones that lose out.

Until the attitudes of people change, there’s simply not going to be enough parking to go around. Unless you would prefer that the successful businesses that have made these shopping precincts desirable to visit to revert back to the drab, basic and unpopular businesses which barely scraped by and formed the heart of derelict precincts that people avoided unless they had no other choice? Then there’d be empty car parks galore and no one would care because no one would be going there anyway.

rommeldog56 said :

I think a similar parking issue was raised on Riotact a while ago – in relation to Ainslie shops.

Stand by for the same sort of responses responses……………

I tipped this.

bruce_lord said :

I went to the pub there a few weeks ago and agree that parking was pretty bad.

Went to Erindale on Friday night and parking was beyond abysmal, cars circling around waiting to pounce on anyone pulling out and then gridlock as McDonalds drive through blocked the whole road.

Which proves conclusively that Erindale is more vibrant than O’Connor; the latter doesn’t even have a Macca’s.

I went to the pub there a few weeks ago and agree that parking was pretty bad.

Went to Erindale on Friday night and parking was beyond abysmal, cars circling around waiting to pounce on anyone pulling out and then gridlock as McDonalds drive through blocked the whole road.

rommeldog56 said :

Stand by for the same sort of responses responses……………

Like “Ride a bicycle” or “Catch public transport”. These are apparently the solution to every problem mankind has ever faced. It doesn’t matter if you can’t or don’t want to do either of the above, be it for health reasons, time constraints or convenience. People won’t care that you have a shopping trolley full of groceries or there is a tropical monsoon bearing down on Canberra, those are apparently not valid reasons to be selfish or entitled enough to drive your own car to the local shops.
Do not worry, this problem will become a forgotten fact of history once the tram, saviour of the Canberra commuter, is complete. Then there will be an abundance of vacant car parks all around shopping centres.
To put this problem into perspective though, have you seen the queues outside major shopping malls lately? The Westfield in Belconnen on Saturday, who have now narrowed the western carpark entry to one lane thanks to the introduction of ticket-less parking, had a queue of vehicles backed up almost to the traffic lights on Luxton Street. Having no ticket machine hasn’t made entering the car park any faster at all. The lack of parking facilities and large number of weekend Christmas shoppers has made it an experience I would like to avoid if at all possible.
People also have no concept of pulling to the side if they are waiting for a spot to become vacant. The reason for the massive conga line was one person who decided that they would stop in the middle of the road area in order to wait for a parent to put their shopping in the boot, put their baby in the capsule, their partner to put the stroller also in the boot and then return the trolley. During this entire exercise, if the patient road blocker had simply pulled to the side, cars may have continued to drive past and locate a spot for themselves. But, no! It was necessary for everybody to sit there for several minutes and wait for one person to get themselves organized. That is pure selfishness and discourtesy. Some folks simply do not have a clue.

O’Connor also has a Health Centre, and Clubs across the road. Ainslie has more parking, I think?

I think a similar parking issue was raised on Riotact a while ago – in relation to Ainslie shops.

Stand by for the same sort of responses responses……………