Driver accused of 'entitled' act at beachside car park risking a $120 fine

A motorbike is parked on a no-parking zone at Sunrise Beach, Noosa beside a car parked in a standard parking bay.
A motorbike rider could have faced a $120 fine for a parking offence she claims she didn't commit at Sunrise Beach in Noosa, Queensland. Source: Facebook

As the warm weather sets in, the quest to secure a car park near the beach begins to intensify across the country. And, like the changing of the seasons, bad driver behaviour has also reared its ugly head, with one motorbike rider lucky to dodge a fine through no parking fault of her own.

The woman returned to her motorbike on Sunday at Sunrise Beach in Noosa, Queensland to find her vehicle in the middle of a no-parking area — a spot she claims she didn't leave it. The beachgoer claimed someone simply picked up her bike and moved it out of a bay because they wanted the park instead.

"Thanks to the lovely person who physically moved our scooter out of a legitimate car park and into an emergency vehicle access park while we were walking the beach today," she wrote online.

If a parking ranger had caught sight of the motorbike left in the no-parking area, the woman could have faced a $120 fine for obstructing a safety zone commonly used by ambulances.

After details of the incident were shared on social media, some branded the move "entitled" and "rude". Yet the motorbike rider also copped it from Aussies over her decision to park in a standard parking bay, with some suggesting they should be left for cars instead.

"It's hard enough to get a car park, scooters should not be allowed to take up car parks. I would have moved you too," one wrote, while another instructed her to "park on the grass".

"You're the problem, you bought a scooter to avoid the parking issue. Now claim a full car park, [they] should have thrown your bike in the bush," one person even responded.

However, others said she was well within her right to park in a standard bay and the Noosa Council confirmed to Yahoo News that was the case.

"Motorcycles are permitted to occupy parking bays within Noosa Shire Council’s car parks," a spokesperson said.

The council encouraged the woman to contact the Queensland Police if she believed her vehicle had been "unlawfully tampered with while parking".

Parking has been in short supply near beaches across the country and many councils have cracked down on overnight or long-stay parking in an attempt to curb the mounting issue. Noosa Shire Council has been trialling harsher penalties. Meanwhile last week a Perth council controversially cut off the hot water supply at its beach showers to deter those camping overnight in public areas.

A surfer holding his surf board speaking to a driver beside his car in a full car park near the beach.
The limited number of parking bays at Aussie beaches continues to cause tension among drivers. Source: Getty

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