Frustrated commuters are calling for more parking at Watergardens train station.
There are 682 sealed parking spaces, plus another 550 lots leased from the Watergardens Town Centre, at the station.
But commuters facing a carpark crush say it’s not enough.
Star Weekly revealed in June that Watergardens’ owners QIC had made changes to carparking restrictions, replacing all-day parking at the shopping centre with four-hour timed zones.
Commuter Cathy Tambakis said the decision to change the parking limits had impacted hundreds of people who use the station to get to work.
Almost 300 people have signed a petition she started, which calls for more parking at the station.
“Some [commuters] have resorted to parking in front of aged care facilities, neighbourhood properties and kindergartens, which has put stress on the community and traffic around Sydenham,” the petition states.
“Due to the changes, community members have had to rearrange their timetables in order to catch a bus to the station. Some parents have reduced work hours and reorganised work schedules to drop off and pick up children, as both these groups of people are now relying on an inconvenient bus service that does not co-ordinate its schedule with the train schedule. Others have been pushed onto an already congested road system.”
Ms Tambakis said level crossing works being carried out at St Albans and Ginifer stations had forced commuters, who normally parked at those stations to drive to Watergardens.
She said Brimbank council should consider freeing up vacant land behind the park on Sydenham Road for an extra 200-250 car spaces.
A PTV spokesman said a working group comprising representatives of the state government, PTV, Brimbank council, VicTrack and centre owners had been set up to “explore options to increase commuter parking at the station”.
“PTV is investigating improvements along the rail corridor … to increase capacity at the …car park at Watergardens station,” he said.
Council’s city development director Stuart Menzies said the vacant land behind the car park was a former tip, limiting its potential use.
The petition can be found at www.change.org
