A man’s well-intentioned choice to park his car on the grassy area beside his friend’s house has ignited online discussion after he received a fine exceeding $100 for the move.

Last month, Maitland Hanley aimed to be considerate by leaving his van on the nature strip adjacent to the driveway during a visit to his friend in Logan.

“Parking is scarce on these streets, so I figured I’d park on the grass to avoid obstructing anyone,” Hanley explained.

However, this seemingly thoughtful decision led to an unexpected outcome when a $111 fine arrived in his mailbox.

“I find it absurd. I attempted to contest the fine, but my efforts were unsuccessful,” he lamented.

The offence – stopping on a nature strip – is illegal under Australian road rules and enforced by local councils with varying penalties.

Twelve other fines have been issued on the same street in the past year. 

“Imagine someone that is struggling to make like a weekly wage and they get a $111 fine,” Hanley said.

The fine has divided public opinion after Hanley took to social media to air his frustrations, despite opting to pay the fine.

“It’s real 50-50 to be honest, some people are like, they’re rallying behind me and then there’s the other 50 per cent that are like ‘get on with it, get over it’,” he said.

Legislation states a legally parked car must be within the property boundary, facing the direction of travel and have all wheels on the road.

There’s a bylaw for roads narrower than six metres specific to Logan City Council that allows nature strip parking if there’s still 1.2 metres of access.

”The weirdest part for me is I was only there for like an hour,” Hanley said.

“I hope that this can help in some way and some other people won’t be parking on nature strips anytime soon.”

Logan City Council said Hanley’s park was “in breach of parking rules issued under s 197(1) of the Transport Operations (Road Use Management – Road Rules) Regulation 2009, also known as Queensland Road Rules”.

“Council’s role is to uphold the State legislation and enforce parking laws in the City of Logan,” a spokesperson said in a statement.

“Nature strips and grass verges function as pedestrian thoroughfares and must remain clear to ensure safe access for all road users.”