PEOPLE who abandon cars on the roadside should have no more than a week to remove them before they are impounded.
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That is the opinion of councillor Warren Aubin, who has grown tired of seeing vehicles left to become eyesores for weeks on end.
He raised the issue at Bathurst Regional Council's August policy committee meeting, requesting to know what powers council has when it comes to abandoned vehicles.
To his frustration, the director of Environmental Planning and Building Services, Neil Southorn, explained that council's powers were limited.
"Unfortunately, there is a protocol that council's obliged to follow, which is to give the owner of the vehicle very much ample opportunity to retrieve their vehicle," he said.
"Only after that protocol has been followed can the vehicle be impounded, which we do, and vehicles which are not taken back by their owners are effectively sold."
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Cr Aubin was prompted to raise the issue after being alerted to a vehicle on Stewart Street that had spent weeks parked on the shoulder of the main road.
The car was little more than a shell, missing panels and components, including the engine, and was propped up on tyres.
It was removed by the owner within the last few days, after council advised them that it may be impounded.
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Cr Aubin told the Western Advocate that council needed to have more authority when it comes to abandoned cars, particularly ones that have been burnt out or taken apart.
"They just sit there for months and council can't just go along and pick them up," he said.
"All the time these wrecks are sitting there looking ugly. That sort of thing shouldn't be on the entrances to the city."
He encouraged people to report abandoned vehicles to council so it could keep a close eye on them and get in touch with the owners when appropriate.