Education is being favoured by the Dunedin City Council for now, but enforcement could be coming.
Part of the street has been converted to one-way traffic and the design emphasises shared space to make the environment more accessible and inviting for pedestrians
However, some motorists have taken advantage of the new layout, particularly during evenings and on Sundays when they expect parking enforcement will not be operating.
The final block in the George St upgrade was reopened to traffic last month and a council spokesman said it was aware of an issue with some drivers parking "improperly" there — blocking shared-space areas intended for pedestrians and other road users.
"It’s very early days for us and the community to get used to the new layout and so we are very much taking a monitoring and educational approach.
"Our parking officers are out and about talking with people parking in the shared pathway, to discuss and educate, and we’ll be putting flyers on the [windscreens] of improperly parked vehicles to remind motorists where they should — and should not — be parking.
"We will continue to review our approach and take further steps if required, which may include enforcement action."
Some parking signs were also yet to be installed, but the last ones would be soon, he said.
Otago regional councillor Elliot Weir, speaking as a Dunedin resident, highlighted such issues at a city council meeting this week.
City councillors had their attention drawn to cars "littering the footpath on the shared-space areas" and it was suggested licence plate recognition technology could be an answer for that.
Cr Steve Walker signalled he was uncomfortable with behaviour being allowed to get established before it then had to be stamped out.
Dunedin citizen Jessica de Heij told the Otago Daily Times the parked vehicles disrupted cycling and walking and this affected elderly people and those with disabilities.
She hoped CCTV cameras might discourage illegal parking and said use of bollards to make areas safer to walk around was common overseas.
Research showed efforts to create cities that were more "walkable" had benefits for businesses.
Former NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi board member Patrick Reynolds said he visited Dunedin last month and George St was "looking fantastic".
Mr Reynolds said George St would reach a goal of being a great people space if it was not "covered in cars".
