You soon may have to pay to park your car at Griffith Regional Airport. Photo: Griffith City Council.
Griffith Council has obtained three quotes from private suppliers to introduce ticketless paid parking at its airport.
A new airport committee, which includes councillors Christine Stead and Tony O’Grady and community members, was recently formed and is discussing options for introducing paid parking.
At its inaugural meeting in March, the airport committee recommended that a licence plate recognition ticketless paid parking system with three lanes for entry and/or exit be approved.
Under this system, cars entering the airport don’t need to collect a paper ticket. A camera reads their licence plate and determines how much is owed when the car is leaving. The driver pays the fee with a card but can’t pay with cash.
“[Having a] cash system costs more money, which is why we went with the card only option,” Councillor O’Grady told council at its April monthly meeting.
No details have yet been provided on how much the fees will be for parking your vehicle at the airport. Parking at the airport is currently free and unlimited.
“[Council staffer] Peter Badenhorst presented an overview of the proposal for implementing paid parking at Griffith Regional Airport,” the minutes of the inaugural March airport committee meeting state.
“Council has obtained quotes from three suppliers for two ticketless parking systems and various lane configurations. Funds for the installation of the ticketless parking system have been allocated in the 2024/25 budget.”
Griffith Council voted to accept the airport committee recommendation at its April meeting. Mayor Doug Curran stressed that this did not mean council had signed off on a three-lane ticketless paid parking system, but said it meant staff could now continue to investigate this option.
“Should council endorse to accept the recommendations in these minutes, inclusive of … Griffith airport paid car parking, staff will obtain updated quotations for the cost to implement the ticketless parking system,” the airport committee minutes state.
“Options will also be investigated for the parking fees at the airport. A report will be presented to the next meeting of the committee following the adoption of the 2025/26 budget. It is anticipated that this procurement process will be via public tender.”
In 2023, Griffith Council told the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART), the NSW Government body that regulates council rates, that it was considering introducing paid parking at its airport.
At the time, the council was applying for a special rate variation to substantially increase rates, arguing that its costs were growing faster than its revenue and it was struggling to remain financially secure. As part of its application, it had to demonstrate that it was exploring options to increase its revenue base.
“Council is currently investigating technology solutions to introduce paid parking at Griffith City Airport. It is anticipated that additional revenue will be generated by introducing paid parking, however in initial years, this additional revenue will be offset by the capital cost of implementation,” council said in a submission to IPART.
Griffith Regional Airport is owned, operated and maintained by Griffith City Council and is located 4.3 km from the town centre.
