New mobile parking camera for Te Puke and Katikati

A roving parking camera will be out and about in Te Puke and Katikati next week for training, before ticketing starts on Monday 15 December.

The use of License Plate Recognition (LPR) camera technology was approved as part of Western Bay of Plenty District Council’s 2025-26 Annual Plan.

The decision follows a successful trial last year that tested the system’s effectiveness – although no tickets were issued during the trial.

The introduction of the camera aims to both support local businesses and deter unsafe parking, says Council’s Compliance and Monitoring Manager Dougal Elvin.

“Increasing the turnover of car parks in our town centres makes it easier for people to find a spot, so they can support local shops and businesses. We want to make sure our town centres are accessible and convenient, so people can pop in, do their shopping and keep the community vibrant,” he says.

The high-resolution, car-mounted camera will capture license plates and GPS locations of parked cars, to identify those that have parked for longer than the designated time, or that are parked illegally, for instance on yellow lines.

It will be operated by a fulltime parking and bylaws officer, who will also be monitoring vehicle registrations, Warrant of Fitnesses and accessible parking spaces.

“Parking officers often face verbal abuse and threatening behaviour while doing their job. The LPR system will help keep our officer safe, by enabling them to do the majority of their work from a vehicle,” says Dougal.

The mobile camera will be mostly used in Te Puke and Katikati, where there are time restrictions on parking, ranging from five minutes to four hours. It will also have a presence in Waihī Beach over summer, to encourage people to park responsibly during the peak holiday season.

Council is also using its existing CCTV cameras to monitor parking in Te Puke, Katikati and Ōmokoroa.

“This became possible when we changed contractors for our CCTV monitoring, and we are making use of this technology to make parking safer and more accessible for everyone,” says Dougal.

“Our goal overall is to make parking work better for the whole community.”