This parking sign is so confusing it duped seasoned TV reporter Eddy Meyer
- Replies 10
Parking can be a tricky affair, especially if the street signs are confusing for drivers.
Last October 2, a number of vehicles parked on York Street, in Sydney’s CBD,—including the car of Channel 9’s veteran reporter Eddy Meyer—were towed after falling victim to an impossibly complicated parking sign.
Mr Meyer parked on the street that morning at 10:30 a.m. when he noticed the baffling sign.
The bright yellow sign announced a clearway from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m. on September 30, October 1 and October 2. Below it, the standard sign listed a mix of parking rules for the area—a 4-hour parking zone, loading zone, bus zone, and no stopping zone.
‘We know that street well, we know when we can park there and when we can't,’ Mr Meyer said on a radio program.
He mentioned that he only expected to be there for an hour to record a news segment, explaining: ‘Normally you can park there for four hours, and that's what the sign said, we looked at the clearway sign, and we thought we were clear.’
Along with his cameraman, Hamish, they bought a parking ticket from the machine.
However, when they returned, their car—along with others parked nearby—had been towed away. It turned out the opaque ‘special event’ notice actually meant no parking for 55 hours straight—from 2 p.m. Saturday to 9 p.m. Monday night.
The reporter shared his frustration on social media and addressed the city: ‘Are you serious with this sign?!! Car was towed even though the machine gave us a ticket.’
You can read his full post here:
His followers empathised, with many saying the sign made no sense.
'No reasonable person could read that special event restriction as meaning the 55 hours between 2 p.m. Saturday and 9 p.m. Monday,' one commented.
‘Why would normal parking restrictions apply outside those times? I think you’d have a good case to challenge the towing fee and any fine that was applied,’ another suggested.
The next day, October 3, Mr Meyer gave an update about the whole situation. He confirmed that he was indeed parked legally, which is the reason why the ticket machine had allowed them to pay in the first place.
But he also clarified that Transport for New South Wales had put the ‘Special Event’ clearway sign up, not the city of Sydney.
You can read his update here:
Former Parking Inspector Arthur Birch also weighed in on the issue, telling a radio program that ‘all councils have to use the Australian standards. And, that states that where a sign has 2pm to 9pm that means on whatever day it refers to. So, it's clearly a case where it should only be applied from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m.’.
His followers on social media were relieved to hear the update, with one writing: ‘Great to hear you have part of this sorted. I hate to think how much this would have cost if you didn’t stand up to them.’
‘An average [person] would have no hope in h*** of getting a favourable outcome like this one,’ another claimed.
This issue is not only present in Sydney. As one of Mr Meyer’s followers recounted, it also happened to him in another state.
‘I got stiffed on a similar one in Hawthorn, Victoria. No towing but a wildly complicated sign spanning over multiple days, which threw me off,’ he shared.
In Queensland, another confusing parking sign was also spotted. It garnered the attention of social media users, with many speculating on its meaning. You can read the full story here.
Have you fallen victim to a confusing parking sign? Share your stories and top parking tips in the comments below!
Last October 2, a number of vehicles parked on York Street, in Sydney’s CBD,—including the car of Channel 9’s veteran reporter Eddy Meyer—were towed after falling victim to an impossibly complicated parking sign.
Mr Meyer parked on the street that morning at 10:30 a.m. when he noticed the baffling sign.
The bright yellow sign announced a clearway from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m. on September 30, October 1 and October 2. Below it, the standard sign listed a mix of parking rules for the area—a 4-hour parking zone, loading zone, bus zone, and no stopping zone.
Channel 9 reporter Eddy Meyer’s car was towed due to a confusing sign in Sydney’s Central Business District. Credit: @eddy_meyer/X (Twitter)
‘We know that street well, we know when we can park there and when we can't,’ Mr Meyer said on a radio program.
He mentioned that he only expected to be there for an hour to record a news segment, explaining: ‘Normally you can park there for four hours, and that's what the sign said, we looked at the clearway sign, and we thought we were clear.’
Along with his cameraman, Hamish, they bought a parking ticket from the machine.
However, when they returned, their car—along with others parked nearby—had been towed away. It turned out the opaque ‘special event’ notice actually meant no parking for 55 hours straight—from 2 p.m. Saturday to 9 p.m. Monday night.
The reporter shared his frustration on social media and addressed the city: ‘Are you serious with this sign?!! Car was towed even though the machine gave us a ticket.’
You can read his full post here:
Credit: @eddy_meyer/X (Twitter)
His followers empathised, with many saying the sign made no sense.
'No reasonable person could read that special event restriction as meaning the 55 hours between 2 p.m. Saturday and 9 p.m. Monday,' one commented.
‘Why would normal parking restrictions apply outside those times? I think you’d have a good case to challenge the towing fee and any fine that was applied,’ another suggested.
The next day, October 3, Mr Meyer gave an update about the whole situation. He confirmed that he was indeed parked legally, which is the reason why the ticket machine had allowed them to pay in the first place.
But he also clarified that Transport for New South Wales had put the ‘Special Event’ clearway sign up, not the city of Sydney.
You can read his update here:
Credit: @eddy_meyer/X (Twitter)
Former Parking Inspector Arthur Birch also weighed in on the issue, telling a radio program that ‘all councils have to use the Australian standards. And, that states that where a sign has 2pm to 9pm that means on whatever day it refers to. So, it's clearly a case where it should only be applied from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m.’.
His followers on social media were relieved to hear the update, with one writing: ‘Great to hear you have part of this sorted. I hate to think how much this would have cost if you didn’t stand up to them.’
‘An average [person] would have no hope in h*** of getting a favourable outcome like this one,’ another claimed.
This issue is not only present in Sydney. As one of Mr Meyer’s followers recounted, it also happened to him in another state.
‘I got stiffed on a similar one in Hawthorn, Victoria. No towing but a wildly complicated sign spanning over multiple days, which threw me off,’ he shared.
In Queensland, another confusing parking sign was also spotted. It garnered the attention of social media users, with many speculating on its meaning. You can read the full story here.
Have you fallen victim to a confusing parking sign? Share your stories and top parking tips in the comments below!
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