It angers me to read that Byron Shire Council is not giving grace to unsuspecting ‘offenders’ of this ugly parking system dumped upon us here in the bay, when the victim (letter ‘Parking Hell’, Pat Janda, January 20) was actually exempt from any parking fees to begin with.
To further the issue, after reading Kol Dimond’s letter (Nanny State, same issue) I generally agree with him that we are indeed being trampled by over-governing and legislation.
Tis a shame. I believe Winston Churchill once proclaimed ‘Too much over-regulation shall only lead to revolt.’
These new hefty fines for ‘free-haired’ cyclists may well trigger ‘offenders’ to abscond from the law enforcers.
Beware skate-boarders; the way things are going, you’ll be wearing helmets next.
Jon Bradley, Byron Bay
Dear Mr Bradley
Thanks for speaking out More need to, However, I don’t feel it is helpful to confuse issues of ‘nanny-state’ with the illegality of paid parking. Whether or not one agrees upon whether a Corporation (the private corporation known as BSC) is allowed to force riders to wear helmets for their own safety, under threat of penalty, is a seperate issue to parking.
Lets talk about parking
You speak of revolt. Well, where is it? People have already written into this paper on a number of occasions calling for organised resistance and non compliance, in the style of Ghandi – peaceful non violent refusal to participate. Where are the people stepping up to take leadership? Where are the meetings discussing strategy and organisation? So far I am only hearing complaing. I”d do it but I’m overseas
As has ALREADY been suggested in this paper, the most reliable method is to find leverage in the following way. 1. Get agreement from a large body of people to not pay for parking 2. Have them be willing to receive a fine and commit to not be scared about any threats, but not to pay it under any circumstances. 3. ”Elect” to go to court. If you get a hearing date, adjourn it indefinitely. Note – when you elect for court all penalties are halted, no enforcement occurs – everything is on hold until a hearing
4. The court is now privty to thousands upon thousands of court elections – which also keep getting adjourned. This is a tiny little court house. It will take YEARS to process. They will quickly tire of being glorified debt collectors for a private corporation (BSC) and quickly sever their responsiblity in order to deal with REAL legal matters
Please note the Statute of Limitations for on the spot infringements is also 12 months or less depending on which state you are in. So, if a court hearing does not take place within 12 months the fine is automaticall null and void. If a hearing does go ahead you can automatically anull the fine and claim costs on top
So. Who is going to stop complaining and start organising?
Jennifer
For protest to have legitimacy it must be organized by small business owners and/or people who live in the shire.
Small businesses have been cut adrift by paid parking. If they grasp the nettle and call for protest then many people from the area will support them.
Other than that, empty parking spaces indicate that a lot of people have decided not to visit or shop in Byron anymore. So in a sense an informal boycott of Byron Bay is already underway. Who knows? It might prove to be effective.
Nobody really wants the bother of protest. But if it is organised by shopkeepers and/or residents then many people will support it.
Jennifer
Don’t be hard on the lack of leadership from shire residents.
When they do speak out they are generally called a blow in (unless their links to the area date back 100 years or so). This happened in the comments section under Mandy’s soap box article on paid parking a few weeks ago.
Calling someone a blow in might sound trivial but in point of fact it is a highly effective bullying strategy in small towns.
The blow in card invokes a hierarchy of belonging.
It is a very potent and intimidating small town stand over strategy which should not be underestimated. This is hand to hand stuff.
This is why I also applaud Jon for speaking out.
Thanks everyone. I ask you share Jennifers message far and wide. Get people talking about this.
Imagine how exciting a groundswell of organised resistance would be. pete, you said no one wants the bother of protest – this is not a bother though. It’s not hard. It’s not work. It’s just a committment. It will save everyone money in the short and long term. It would have instant, immediate benefits for shops.
And – just because you don’t pay for parking doesn’t mean you will automatically get a fine anyway.
This is a way of standing up against the rock wall, west byron, the threats to relocate the produce and community markets – standing up against a council that don’t care about anything – but money. Get them where it hurts. peoples lives are being destroyed here. ..
I cant believe the stupidity!!!!. I went into town to spend a few hundred at a couple of shops. Thought I would take 5 min. The crazy pay station would not dispense a ticket I put in $1 as I was going to be 5 min. It insisted on $3 which I put in. THEN wanted my rego SOL55 After 5 attempts the message kept saying NO SUCH REGO. (guess NSW hasnt heard of personalised plates….. It took my money without a refund. I left town with my spending money intact never to return. I usually spend around $1000 odd per year when shopping in Byron as I like the stores.. Sorry kiddies you’ve lost it… in more ways than one.