What is the project?
Latrobe City Council has commenced a review of the car parking supply and utilisation within the Traralgon Activity Centre to identify future parking needs, parking management options and to review the Parking Overlay - Schedule 1 currently applied to the Traralgon Activity Centre.
It should be noted that the review is a separate project and does not form part of Regional Development Victoria’s, Regional Car Parks Fund which includes their commitment to deliver 500 news spaces within Traralgon. For more information on the Regional Car Parks Fund please go to https://www.rdv.vic.gov.au/grants-and-programs/regional-car-parks-fund
The additional car parks to be provided by the Regional Car Parks Fund within Traralgon will be included within the review when considering future car parking supply.
Who is involved?
Council has engaged Ratio Consultants to assist with undertaking the car parking review. Ratio is a combined transport engineering and planning, urban design and town planning consultancy with experience across a wide range of projects and sectors.
What are the aims?
The project aims to identify future parking needs to ensure the appropriate provision of car parking spaces is provided (balancing car parking supply and demand) in the Traralgon Activity Centre into the future.
The project will also review the Parking Overlay - Schedule 1 currently applied to the Traralgon Activity Centre in particular the requirements of the cash-in-lieu contribution given the changes to car parking within the centre since the introduction of Parking Overlay in 2014. The review will also make recommendations on current car parking management, future car parking provision, prioritisation, triggers for construction and management.
What is the study area?
The study area is known as the Traralgon Activity Centre and is identified in Figure 1. The area is generally bounded by Grey Street to the north, Traralgon Creek and Princes Highway to the east, the railway precinct to the south, and the rear property boundary of Breed Street commercial properties (including Hubert Osborne Park) to the west.
Land within the centre is predominately zoned Activity Centre Zone Schedule 1 – Traralgon Activity Centre (ACZ1). The Parking Overlay Schedule 1 – Traralgon Activity Centre (PO1) has been applied to the majority of the centre – see Figure 2.
Current Stage (November - February 2023)
Stage 1 – Background Review and Site Visits - COMPLETE
Stage 1 of the project is complete which consisted of a review of all relevant background documents to inform the car parking review. Ratio Consultants also undertook site visits and have completed an up to date car parking inventory for the Traralgon Activity Centre.
Stage 2 - Car Parking Occupancy and Length of Stay Survey - COMPLETE
Stage 2 of the project involved the undertaking of a car parking occupancy and length of stay survey to obtain up to date car parking utilisation and compliance information.
Stage 3 – Information gathering - COMPLETE
Stage 3 of the project involved initial consultation with key stakeholders to help identifying issues and opportunities and gather ideas to better understand the parking situation within Traralgon.
As part of this a Community Car Parking User Survey was conducted between December – February 2023 to better understand how people access, move around and park within the Traralgon Activity Centre. A total of 1474 surveys were completed and received by council.
Duration of stay surveys were also conducted for the Traralgon Activity Centre on one weekday and one weekend day.
Stage 4 – Drafting of Car Parking Review – COMPLETE
The draft Car Parking Review was received by council on 3 October 2023. The Review includes a range of analysis, key findings and recommendations with regard to the current and future parking provisions for the Traralgon Activity Centre.
Next Steps
The draft Traralgon Car Parking Review October 2023 was endorsed at the 6th November 2023 Ordinary Council Meeting. Further community consultation will be undertaken as part of Planning Scheme Amendment C142 where submissions will be sought prior to finalisation and incorporation into the Latrobe Planning Scheme.
Further information
For further information, phone the Strategic Planning Officer on 1300 367 700 or email Latrobe@latrobe.vic.gov.au.