Thursday 14 January 2010
City workers and motorists are reminded about new road rules and special parking zones in place for the Tamworth Country Music Festival.
Normal parking areas and city roads have changed and traffic conditions will be different for those heading into the CBD tomorrow for work. The festival ring road around the CBD is now operating.
Tamworth Regional Council has repeated warnings today for festival motorists and CBD workers to observe parking signs and road diversions so that pedestrians and festival foot traffic are kept safer.
But festival director Steve Bartlett says many people can also avoid hefty fines and traffic jams by taking note of the new rules.
Mr Bartlett says a number of parking zones, particularly in inner city areas like White, Fitzroy and Brisbane streets and in Kable Ave, have changed and motorists should take notice of them or risk hefty fines. Local drivers should look for alternative parking and be prepared to walk a little further from today. Parking will be at a premium.
Parking officers will usually target disabled, emergency, bus and loading zones for people ignoring traffic signs. And drivers who ignore closed road areas or enter closed roads without permits or contravene their permits, also risk being fined.
He urges all motorists to check signs and obey them. This includes new disabled parking zones in Fitzroy St and White St – where locals in previous years have been caught and booked.
Temporary taxi zones operate in Brisbane St next to the Central Hotel and in Kable Ave around the corner from the Regent Theatre. The festival bus zone is in Kable Ave opposite No I Oval.
Kable Ave is closed between Brisbane St and Fitzroy St, Peel St is closed at Bourke and White streets and Fitzroy St is closed between Kable Ave and Smith Place, near the town hall.
A new change this year is the creation of dual traffic lanes from near the Imperial Hotel in Marius St through to Bourke St. It is designed to keep northbound traffic flowing smoothly instead of the previous bottleneck created when double lanes at the Brisbane St intersection merged into one near Noel Park House.
To do that, temporary parallel parking zones come into place in that block on the Noel Park House side of the road.