One prominent North Wollongong resident and Wollongong MP Paul Scully are calling for action to resolve parking and traffic congestion at North Wollongong Beach.
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Solicitor Mark McDonald and Mr Scully want less talk and more action on solutions to the parking headache at the foreshore.
“Every summer I feel so bad for families who have to lug their belongings to the beach from their cars,” the partner at Maguire and McInerney said.
“Traffic along George Hanley Drive, Cliff Road and Corrimal Street gets banked up on public holidays.
“It can be gridlock.
“I have to praise Wollongong council for the beautiful work they have done on the Blue Mile Tramway for locals and visitors to enjoy.
“But it is such a shame there is not adequate parking for them.”
Mr McDonald suggests Wollongong City Council should look at investing in more car parking around the foreshore and charge drivers a small all-day fee.
Mr Scully said “it was time” to start turning talk of fixing the problem into concrete plans.
“There are some pressures on our beaches over those peak periods,” he said.
“That’s why it is important for everyone involved at the state government, council and tourism and events operators to sit down and have a chat about what we can do to spread the load around our beaches.
“There are ways we can manage [the parking congestion].
“We are the city of innovation so lets become innovative and creative about how we deal with it.”
Mr Scully said there were several options on the table such as a concept plan for a multi-storey car park at North Wollongong Beach.
“That may not be the best look because it may detract from the beach environment,” he said.
“There may be a better spot on the Gong Shuttle route to put the car park and then we can encourage people to use the transport system.
“Maybe it is time the council progresses their plans for the Stewart Street car park.
“It is time to have a strategic look. Let’s start working on it now before it becomes far too late.”
Wollongong Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery knows traffic congestion around North Wollongong Beach and other Wollongong beaches is a growing problem but said there was “not much the council could do”.
He said the areas around the beach were built up and any more car parking would “diminish the opportunity of the beach”.
“The area is constrained,” he said. “The council would need to acquire land. The solution would not be pretty or cheap.”
He did suggest Cliff Road could become one way allowing for angle parking and more car spots, and the council could use Roads and Maritime Services signs to tell visitors, who are predominately from south-west Sydney, that parking at the beach had reached capacity in an attempt to dissuade them from travelling south.
Cr Bradbery agreed the council would have to get “creative” to find a solution and believes a better rail service would help the situation.
Councillors will receive a update on the beach parking strategy at the next council meeting.