BATHURST, Australia -- Banks with ATMs accessed directly from a footpath can expect Bathurst City Council to start charging footpath rent from July 1, according to a report in the Western Advocate.
The city has budgeted in its management plan to collect $35,000 in charges in its next financial year.
Council members began discussing the idea of charging banks for providing banking services adjacent to footpaths after it received complaints from residents about pedestrian access being blocked.
(See related stories Australian City Council considering ATM tax and Another Australian council considering ATM tax)
"We see it as no different to fees paid by restaurants for putting tables out on the footpaths," said council general manager Phillip Perram.
According to the Western Advocate, Mayor Ian Macintosh said some Sydney councils and at least one north coast council were set to follow Bathurst's lead.
He said one aim of the charge was to encourage banks to address the problem of ATM queues obstructing access for pedestrians, particularly parents with strollers, and the aged.
"We are serious about it. It is not something we put up for the heck of it," he said. "They can either move them, or pay us."
