Licence plate recognition (LPR) is a more efficient way of monitoring parking in the city.
Parking officers will monitor parking in more places more often, so that the public gets fairer access to the car parks available.
LPR vehicles were planned and budgeted for in the Council’s 2021 Long-term Plan.
How does LPR work?
LPR vehicles record images of a vehicle and its number plate, tyre valve position, and GPS location. This information, along with the location's parking rules, show if a vehicle has overstayed or parked illegally.
The data uploads into the parking enforcement system. A parking officer checks the information before deciding whether to issue a parking ticket. Parking tickets will be sent to the registered owner via the post.
The Parking Services cars will have three cameras on each side – two on the roof and one on the rear wheel arch.
Vehicles will be clearly marked as Wellington City Council Parking Services vehicles.
What will the cars be used for?
The cars will first be used to survey parking usage. They will gather parking data to help us plan for the city’s parking needs.
Following this, the cars will be used for parking enforcement, with an initial focus on resident parking areas. These are in Kelburn, Kilbirnie, Mount Cook, Mount Victoria, Newtown/Berhampore, Te Aro, Thorndon, Miramar, and Clifton.
Use of the cars will be expanded in the future, to include enforcement of metered and other restricted parking in the city.
Timeline
| June - September 2024 |
on-road testing of cars |
| From October 2024 |
parking usage surveys |
| From October 2024 |
resident parking enforcement |
| 2025 |
some metered parking enforcement |
Background
We receive around 1100 complaints per month of illegal parking, for offences such as parking in residents’ areas without a permit and/or overstaying.
Our Parking Policy is designed to manage parking pressures over the next 10-20 years as the city grows. As we carry out plans like the introduction of a new resident permit scheme, there will be changes to on-street parking.
As parking becomes more in-demand, there is increased need for our parking officers to be in more places, more often, to provide enforcement.
LPR vehicles will enable our parking officers to be in more places, more often, and will improve efficiency and consistency.
Privacy
The LPR cars will operate within the requirements of the Privacy Act 2020. Images and video that are gathered will only be used by Wellington City Council for enforcement/evidential and occupancy survey purposes.
Video and images from the LPR cars will be securely stored for enforcement and any appeals, and then automatically disposed of from the Council’s infringement system in line with the Council’s retention policy. This is current practice for images collected by on-foot parking officers.
A complete Privacy Impact Assessment is being done. We'll publish it here after testing of the new cars.