Royal Show Parking ‘easy target’ for park lands protection, says mayor
The Adelaide City Council will reduce Royal Adelaide Show car parking from 2027, but not as much as its park lands advisory board recommends.
Kadaltilla, the Adelaide Park Lands Authority, recommended reducing car parking by 10 per cent over 15 years, but councillors plan to reduce parking by 5 per cent.
At last night’s City Planning, Development and Business Affairs Committee meeting, councillors amended a draft deed to the less ambitious target to support families to attend the show.
For the nine-day duration of the Show, the council provide parking on Golden Wattle Park/Mirnu Wirra (Park 21W), Josie Agius Park/Wikaparntu Wirra (Park 22) and GS Kingston Park/Wirrarninthi (Park 23).
On Tuesday night, Lord Mayor Jane Lomax-Smith said reducing parking by 10 per cent is “unrealistic” and an “easy target” for the council’s tough on park lands stance.
“This seems like an easy target for our vigilance, but it doesn’t seem to me to be even-handed,” she said.
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Since 2011, when the previous deed between the Adelaide City Council and the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society of SA began, there has already been 380 parks lost due to installing new netball courts and greening projects.
“To take up the advice of Kadaltilla and go down another 10 per cent, it would be another nearly 250 or 300 car parks to go and it seems to me to be unrealistic,” Lomax-Smith said.
“To attack moms and dads and families through ideological belief seems irrational, and whilst I normally hate parking in the park lands, this is not permanent parking.
“It’s nine days a year, it’s only for the show, it’s not the bump in, bump out or anything else, it’s nine days and that doesn’t seem such a big challenge for us to accept.”
A 5 per cent reduction in car parking spaces on the selected parks over 15 years aligns with the council’s existing Park Lands Management Strategy to limit parking.
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Deputy Lord Mayor Philip Martin said he won’t support a 5 per cent reduction because the Show Society and the council previously agreed to work together to end parking on the park lands.
“A progressive council that was protective of the parklands, 15 years ago, committed to working to a position where there was no more parking on the park lands,” Martin said.
“The proposal that was placed before the Park Lands Authority was to reduce the number of car parks from 2300 by 230 over 15 years.
“I’m not good at math, but that’s about 15 car spaces a year, over 15 years.
“The proposal before you reduces it to about seven car parks a year over 15 years, it’s all quite meaningless and overturns what it seems were good intentions of the Show Society and the council of 15 years ago.
“As a former councillor used to say, they are park lands, not car parks and for that reason, that is that it represents no improvement, and in fact, is a retrograde step in the context of previous councils, I won’t support it.”
The deed between the Adelaide City Council and the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society of SA to use the park lands for car parking is currently up for renewal and has to pass the council chamber next Tuesday.
The reduction of car parks being debated won’t apply until 2027 onwards.
This comes after the Greens called for free public transport to the showgrounds earlier this week to support the reduced parking.
“The Royal Adelaide Show is an iconic event enjoyed by many South Australian families. In the middle of a cost-of-living crisis, the high price of car parking and limited available spaces can make a visit to the Show a very expensive outing,” said Greens MLC Robert Simms.
“The Showgrounds are already well connected to public transport — the Government should use to the community’s advantage so that all South Australians can enjoy a day at the Show.”
The Adelaide City Council is exploring extending the free city bus to the showgrounds for 2026.
The SA Greens and the Adelaide City Council have previously advocated for 50-cent public transport fares as a cost-of-living measure to support people commuting to the city.
