Uber parking war plan

A NEW food delivery parking bay will be created in North Hobart to alleviate rising tensions between Uber Eats drivers and Elizabeth St businesses.

A parking war has gradually worsened during the past few months along the popular restaurant strip as frustrated shop owners verbally and physically clash with Uber Eats drivers clogging up prime spaces and ignoring road rules. Hobart City Council general manager Nick Heath said the new parking zone would accommodate up to five vehicles and operate between 11am and 9pm, seven days a week.

“We have been in contact with Uber for some weeks now to identify how we can ensure food delivery service drivers are still able to access restaurants in the area,” he said.

“They have committed to ensuring that drivers are aware of these dedicated parking spots.

“We have also worked closely with John Kelly and the North Hobart Traders Association.”

Mr Kelly, the association’s president, said it was a positive first step but called for Uber Eats drivers’ cars to be identified more clearly, like taxis.

“I applaud the council’s actions but the confusion sometimes is that people don’t know if a person sitting in the park- ing spot is an Uber Eats driver or not,” Mr Kelly said.

“You should not be running a business operation in spaces provided for public parking.”

Alderman and Hobart lord mayor candidate Marti Zucco agreed.

“This has been a frustrating time for traders and I call upon the State Government to take further action and follow other jurisdictions who require food service delivery drivers to have stickers on their cars advertising this,” Ald Zucco said.

He said he would contact Uber to ask it to tell its drivers not to park on Elizabeth St between Federal and Burnett streets and to priority send orders to drivers parked on the proposed parking bay in Burnett Place.

An Uber spokeswoman said it wanted to help create a safe environment around North Hobart for businesses, patrons and its drivers.

“We know it is busy in the North Hobart strip and we want to play our part in helping people move around safely and reliably, including by sharing information with delivery partners about local requirements and parking rules,” she said.

Uber Eats launched in Hobart in May and offers a service where customers can order food from local restaurants online or on a smart phone app and the food is delivered for a small delivery fee.