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In short:
The state government has denied that it plans to charge visitors to Victoria's Great Ocean Road to park on public land.
The statement follows after the proposed plan was met with mixed responses from locals.
What's next?
A government website seeking public consultation has since been taken down.
The Victorian government has denied it plans to introduce paid parking along the Great Ocean Road, including the Twelve Apostles, days after the proposal was announced.
Earlier this week, Victoria's Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) announced a proposal that would see parking fees introduced at coastal sites from Torquay to Warrnambool, however, local residents would be exempt.
When asked about the proposal, Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes said the parking fees were not happening.
"I got told about this this morning and my advice is that we're not charging people to park," she said.
On Wednesday afternoon, Victorian Minister for Environment Steve Dimopoulos told the ABC he would "continue to work with Great Ocean Road Coast".
"The Great Ocean Road is one of Victoria's best tourist destinations because it is accessible for families and we won't implement any measures that would harm this," he said.
The DEECA website seeking community feedback has since been taken down.
Website pulled down amid community backlash
Earlier in the week, the proposal was met with a mixed response.
A local progress group said the idea could have merit, while the local MP has described it as a "greedy" tax grab by the government.
Torquay resident Carla Crofts said the parking fees would limit visitors' flexibility to explore the area.
"The thought of having to pay for parking — it's not doable for a lot of families," she said.
"People surf daily for hours upon hours, I'd dread to think how much it would cost people."
Melbourne resident Kelly McLoughlin was visiting the coast for the day with his two daughters and said he would be reluctant to spend time in areas without free parking.
"We'd probably keep driving down to a stop where there was free parking," he said.
DEECA initially said the money raised from the proposed parking fees would go towards protection of the environment and maintenance of facilities.
"Visitor Parking Fees at select sites will directly fund the protection of the coast and parks along the Great Ocean Road. It also means that the thousands of visitors to the area each year are helping protect it for future generations to enjoy," the spokesperson said in a statement.
"As locals would know, at high use areas we have seen environmental values damaged and tourist sites and visitation facilities get run down. This change will improve things on the ground and help manage pressures long-term."
DEECA said part of the consultation would determine a definition of what a "local" was.
Julie Brazier from the Port Campbell Progress Group said the plan could win local support if it helped manage the flow of visitors.
"A lot of them are daytrippers and arrive all at the same time, late in the afternoon which puts huge pressure particularly around the Twelve Apostles and I would think at other communities along the route earlier in the day," she said.
"If it's a way of managing visitors and making money that can go back into both the protection of the park and the provision of visitor facilities then it's certainly an option that people in the community would support."
However, she said the introduction of parking fees should be "within a total plan for managing visitors at the Twelve Apostles and at other sites along the road".
Loading...Victorian Liberal MP Richard Riordan, whose electorate of Polwarth covers part of the Great Ocean Road, said it was a "greasy" tax grab.
"This has been put on because they have cut so much to the basic management of the region. They're just trying to take another dip and another big tax and it stinks," he told ABC Radio Melbourne.
He questioned how it would be determined who will pay parking fees covered by the proposal.
"Is the millionaire in Melbourne who's got a million dollar house, is he a local and will he get free parking?"
"What's going to be local, is it ratepayers, a property owner? Is it if you live in Lorne you can only go to a Lorne beach otherwise you have to pay?"
Tourism group backs fees
Great Ocean Road Regional Tourism general manager Liz Price said there was a lack of investment into tourism across the state and a user-pay system was a welcome solution.
"We've seen growing visitation over the last 10 years but we haven't seen that uplift in the visitor amenity, visitor infrastructure," she said.
"Most of the infrastructure has aged and is not actually fit for purpose."
Ms Price said the tourism industry "took a hit" in the state budget despite its significant contribution to Victoria's economy.
"The visitor economy is a significant driver of economic impact in the state," she said.
"In our region alone, 13 per cent of people are employed through tourism.
"We really need to see investment now."