The Christchurch City Council may crack down on cars parked on berms.

People caught parking on berms in some parts of Christchurch could receive instant fines under a proposed new bylaw.

The Christchurch City Council's Traffic and Parking Bylaw 2008 is being reviewed, with council staff recommending it be replaced with a new bylaw.

A draft bylaw passed its first stage at the council's Regulatory Performance Committee on Wednesday and included new clauses restricting parking on berms and other "landscaped surfaces".

A staff report said the new bylaw would clarify grey areas and allow the council to issue instant fines in some cases, including relating to heavy vehicles spotted on restricted roads and some types of parking offences.

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The proposed bylaw would make it a fineable offence to park on any berms where there was a curb, as well as other surfaces that were not specifically designed for vehicles.

DAVID WALKER/STUFF The proposed bylaw would affect vehicles parks on berms with curbs, like in this Addington street.

Staff said curbs were "a potential contentious issue".

Councillor Jimmy Chen said changing the rules could be disruptive because there was not enough room for residents to park on the roadside in some areas.

The current bylaw only allowed the council to issue a fine if the vehicle caused damage to the ground, which council staff said could be hard to prove.

DAVID WALKER/STUFF The bylaw could make parking like this a fineable offence.

Under the proposed changes, the council would give offending vehicle owners a warning before issuing a fine, and people could still park on grass verges where there was no curb, such as on rural roads.

The new bylaw would further restrict vehicles related to businesses from parking on roadsides to prevent roads being used as extensions of businesses.

Vehicles with advertising on them would also be restricted from parking on roadsides to prevent the advertising being a distraction to drivers.

Vehicles with sign-writing that were used for day-to-day travel would still be allowed to park on roadsides.

The proposed bylaw would also ban trailers, caravans and immobilised vehicles from being stored on the road for more than seven days, but council staff said that would be enforced "with discretion" and only when a complaint was made.

The staff report said owners could subvert the current bylaw by regularly moving such vehicles a small distance or leaving trailers and campervans connected to working vehicles.

DAVID WALKER/STUFF The proposed bylaw will go out for public consultation in late August and may change before it goes before the full council.

Under the new bylaw, they would have to be moved at least 500 metres every week.

The proposed bylaw will go through a public consultation process, likely to be from late August to late September, and may change before being considered by the full council.