Freedom clamping areas in the Queenstown Lakes district will be expanded by next summer.
Late last year the council introduced freedom clamping to target those who camped overnight in vehicles without their own facilities, or who were in self-contained vehicles but set up where freedom camping was not allowed.
Those found in the wrong place have to pay an up-front fee of $200 to have the clamp removed, as well as a $200 fine for breaching the district's freedom camping bylaw.
The clamping was introduced just before Christmas - the first and only clamp to date was applied on December 23.
Council regulatory manager Lee Webster said over the coming months he would look at other ‘‘high problematic areas ... where we're finding a proliferation of people that shouldn't be there'' to apply the clamping to.
‘‘As we come into winter it tends to die down a little bit which is great and that gives us the ability then to try and get things in place for the new season, basically.
‘‘It [the clamping] is having that desired effect for this problematic area here in the [Queenstown] CBD, but they're going somewhere else.''
