Wednesday 24 February 2010

Parking Fines

Parking in different parts in Melbourne can be a problem if you don’t know how to read the parking signs. There are green signs to allow you to park for two hours or more for free. Other signs ask you to buy a ticket from a ticket machine in the street and display it on the dashboard. Be careful when you see a red sign. If you buy a ticket and don’t display it on the dashboard, you will get a parking fine. A parking fine is also called an infringement notice. To buy a ticket from a ticket machine, you need to have the right change (coins). Ticket machines don’t accept banknotes or bank cards. If you leave your car and go to get change, you can get a fine by the time you get back.
People feel angry when they get parking fines. They say it is not fair to get a 57-dolar-fine for parking two or three minutes more after the ticket expires. If drivers who get fines don’t pay them in 28 days, they will have to pay 20 dollars more. If they still don’t pay, they can be asked to pay even more or go to court.
Councils make a lot of money from parking fines each year. Council inspectors now have digital cameras to capture infringements. Whitehorse Council made more than 1 million dollars after 23,000 people got parking fines in 2009. Melbourne City Council made 11.2 millions. Councils say they spend the money on looking after hospitals, public libraries, schools and do road maintenance. Councils say that people must not break the law.
What do I do if I get a parking fine? You can pay it within 28 days or apply for an internal review or you can go to court.
If you want to pay a parking fine, you can do so in different ways:
Online. Visit the council’s web site and use your credit card. This service is available 24 hours a day.
By phone. You will find a telephone number on the back of your parking fine notice. Call the number and give your bank details.
By mail. You can send a cheque or your bank details by mail to council.
In person. You can go to the council and pay your fine there.
How do parking inspectors know if you have parked for longer than the allowed time? This is a secret. They don’t want you to know. Just be careful and read the signs when you park your car.
Correct these sentences:
When people get parking tickets, they always feel happy.
Whitehorse Council made more than 10 million dollars from parking fines in 2009.
When you get a parking fine, you must pay it in 28 years.
You can't pay your parking ticket online using a credit card.
You can use banknotes to buy a parking ticket from a ticket machine.
If the sign says you can park for two hours this means that you can stay for four hours only.
If you don't pay your fine in 28 days, you will be asked to pay less money.
Parking officers in the city of Whitehorse issued 20,000 parking tickets in 2009.
Councils want drivers to break the law.
It is very easy to park your car in the city of Whitehorse because there are no parking inspectors.
Another name for a parking fine is an infringement book.
Parking inspectors want you to know how they can find out if you have parked your car for a longer time.
If you think you have got a parking fine by mistake, you can contact your class teacher.
If you get a parking fine, you can pay it in one way only.