Parked trucks a 'serious hazard' in residential Auckland streets

South Auckland households have complained to local authorities about commercial vehicles being parked in residential areas, calling the practice a safety hazard.

By Gaurav Sharma of RNZ

Marshal Ahluwalia, a member of Manurewa Local Board who has been approached by numerous aggrieved constituents, has taken up the issue with the Government and Auckland Transport.

"Trucks parked in residential streets are a serious safety hazard," Ahluwalia said. "They block visibility, put pedestrians and children at risk, and damage roads that were never designed for heavy vehicles."

Ranjeet Sidhu, a resident of Manurewa, filed a complaint with his local board.

"We are increasingly concerned about the impact this is having on liveability of our streets and community," Sidhu said. "Roads intended for families and local traffic are being used for informal truck parking."

Manpreet Singh, who lives near Sidhu, agreed.

"These big commercial trucks also cause a lot of noise disturbances, particularly early mornings and late evenings, disrupting the entire neighbourhoods – more so, the elderly," Singh said.

"Our daily school runs have become a nightmare.

"We have made several complaints to the relevant authorities many times over the past year or so, but nothing seems to change and the commercial vehicle parking goes unabated.

"Our neighbourhoods should be safe, quiet and liveable. These should not be used as unofficial truck depots."

Jaswinder Singh, another resident – who himself owned two trucks – also agreed.

"I always park my trucks in the designated depots," he said.

"Everyone should do this even if it costs a little bit of money, which in most cases doesn't exceed $200 per month. Commercial vehicle drivers and owners should think about how their behaviour is affecting our communities."

Ahluwalia also argued for stricter penalties.

"Auckland Transport must step up enforcement immediately, introduce stricter parking restrictions and work with industry to create designated heavy vehicle parking zones away from residential areas."

Heather Andrew, chair of Manurewa Local Board, confirmed there had been ongoing informal discussions with Auckland Transport on the issue.

"At the board's 19 March meeting, we highlighted that the ongoing issue of heavy trucks parking in residential streets continues to be raised by residents across the Manurewa Local Board area and creates concerns around safety, visibility and neighbourhood amenity," Andrew said.

"We recommended this feedback was included in Auckland Council's submission on a Land Transport Rules Reform."

Ahluwalia raised the residents' concerns with Transport Minister Chris Bishop, urging him to back councils with stronger legislation, clear national guidelines and funding support to tackle this growing issue.

Bishop, in his reply to the local board, which was shared with RNZ, acknowledged the commercial parking concerns, which he said, "might impact safety and community liveability".

"The Land Transport (Road User) Rule 2004 requires vehicles to be parked with due care and consideration for other road users, not obstruct driveways or block sight lines for other drivers," Bishop wrote.

"As the road controlling authority (RCA) in Auckland, Auckland Transport is empowered to set parking bylaws, including powers to prohibit or restrict the parking of heavy motor vehicles," he wrote.

"This authority is set out in section 22AB of the Land Transport Act 1998. Given this, Auckland Transport is currently the appropriate forum to address your concerns about heavy trucks parking in residential areas.

"However, the Local Government (Auckland Council) (Transport Governance) Amendment Bill, which is expected to pass later this year, will shift most local transport functions, including RCA status, from Auckland Transport to Auckland Council. As such, responsibility for addressing your concerns about heavy trucks being parked in residential areas will move shift to Auckland Council.

"Of note, the bill sets out a division of responsibilities between the governing body and local boards.

"Local boards will be conferred some specific RCA functions in relation to local and collector roads, as defined in the new Auckland Roading Classification Framework. These will include some powers to restrict heavy vehicle parking under the Land Transport Act 1998.

"[Finally] the Government updated parking penalties in October 2024, reflecting changing costs since they were last updated in 2004. Councils identified that this change would assist with enforcement."

A spokesperson for Auckland Transport said a vehicle hadn't infringed any regulations if it had a valid warrant of fitness and registration and was correctly parked in an unrestricted road.

"The exception to that is a specific linear or zone restriction, that restricts the area to vehicles that have a [particular] tare weight," the spokesperson said.

"If parked at night, heavy vehicles must also display the correct lighting as per road user rules. Our team is very diligent in terms of issuing infringements to heavy vehicles that are illegally parked."

Auckland Transport acknowledged the parking of heavy haulage (trucks) had increased in parts of South Auckland, including Manurewa, Ōtara, Takanini, Manukau, Wiri, Papatoetoe and Papakura.

"The number of complaints has been steady but around 90% have been legally parked when officers check during the day, with the other for expired certificate of fitness and registration," the spokesperson said.

"During evening hours, we have issued over 2000 infringements in all areas mentioned for vehicles over 3500kg for no rear facing red light. This has been over a nine-month period.

"There are some streets in Māngere and Papatoetoe that have entry signs stating no trucks, but we cannot enforce those signs."