HARD EXIT: The Gowrie Street Mall multi-storey car park is hard to exit from the two upper levels. Many cars have to perform a three-point turn to enter the exit ramp. This utility took 10 attempts to enter the ramp, eventually mounting the kerb before it could go down the ramp without hitting the right hand wall.
DRIVING skills are being put to the test at the newly-opened Gowrie Street Mall multi-storey car park, with many drivers having to perform three-point turns before they can safely enter the exit ramps on the second and third levels.
The Singleton Argus was contacted by many people last week about the problem with the exit ramps and on visiting the site witnessed most cars having trouble entering the ramp.
Most drivers had to reverse and then approach the ramp at a different angle.
If they did not make several approaches to the ramp,they either hit the right hand wall of the ramp or were forced to mount the left hand kerb as shown in these pictures.
It was easy to enter the ramp by taking a wide right hand turn but this involved passing through car parks opposite the ramp, an option only available to the driver if the car parks are vacant.
Questions are being raised within the community about how a new facility, opened only last week, could contain such a design fault. The redevelopment of the Gowrie Street Mall will cost owners Charter Hall $55 million and the work is being undertaken by Mainbrace Constructions .
In addition to the building of 9500 square metres of new retail space at the site, the construction work included the 580-space car park.
A Charter Hall spokeswoman said the car park had been designed to Australian standards and allowed for adequate turning into the down ramp at Level One.
However, the company was aware some customers were having difficulty negotiating the turn and were looking at how to assist customers when using the exit, she said.