In an article in The Sunday Mail (Brisbane, 3rd October 2010), Amy McCosker and Anthony Templeton highlighted that:
“Parking in Brisbane has become more than a headache, with some motorists slugged over $20 an hour for parking in the city”
As part of a nationwide investigation it has become clear that Brisbane parking rates are amongst the worst in Australia. Brisbane drivers wishing to park in the city pay on average $45 a day (that’s over $200 a week). Brisbane parking station fees are on a par with Melbourne (also $45 a day), and are more expensive than other Capital cities, except for Sydney where you can expect to pay up to $72 a day for parking. Darwin, is the cheapest capital city to park, with fees as low as $2.40 per day at some inner city carparks.
The table below provides an overview of the parking fees for some of Brisbane’s largest commercial carparks (as of Sep 2010) :
| Brisbane Car Park | Hourly Rate | Daily Rate |
| King George Square Carpark | $12 | $40 |
| Myer Centre Carpark | $19 | $43 |
| Wintergarden Carpark | $24 | $66* |
| Queens Plaza Carpark | $20 | $50* |
| Macarthur Central Carpark | $12 | $60* |
| Wilson Parking (Mary St) | $21 | $48 |
| Brisbane Domestic Airport | $13 | $40 |
| South Bank Convention Centre | $14 | $22 |
| Parklands Carpark | $6 | $36 |
* lost ticket fee
Another big “money grab” used by some of the commercial carpark operators is the policy of applying an extra fee if a motorist loses their ticket. In Brisbane you should expect to pay up to $66 for to park your car for the day if you can’t find your parking ticket.
Jim Kershaw a spokesman from the Royal Automobile Club of Queensland (RACQ) suggested that because of the high parking costs, many people parked outside the CBD and caught public transport, and said :
“In a perfect world there would be cheap parking for everyone”
SpaceOut – offers a cheap and convenient solution to motorists looking for alternatives to the high cost parking offered by commercial operators in city CBDs. People can often find a much cheaper parking option by renting an unused private parking space or garage. People living or working in (or near) the CBD, who have a parking space but no car, can also make a bit of extra cash by renting out their space .
