NEWS BPA NEWS Rising prices in the shires


to use parking fi nes to raise revenue. ‘T at is in clear breach of the Secretary of State’s guidelines, which say that local authorities should not view civil parking enforcement as a revenue raiser.’ Transport minister


T e British Parking Association (BPA) is backing calls from a number of local authorities outside London to be able to lift their fi nes to the level imposed in the capital. If successful, the upper limit for fi nes outside London would rise from the current £70 limit to £120.


Emily McCunn, head


of communications, said that the BPA believes that current levels are often not high enough to act as a deterrent, and an urgent review of parking penalty charges is necessary to prevent non-compliance and anomalies in charging across the UK. In some areas the


cost of a fi ne was only slightly more than the


cost of parking for a day, explained McCunn. ‘T is encourages motorists to park in areas where they risk a penalty charge.’ She cited the example


of Cambridge where it can cost £23 a day to park – about the same as in London – but where the standard fi ne for non-payment is £25, if paid within 14 days. Currently, individual


authorities set the level of parking charge, but the government has set a cap on the fi nes that can be imposed for motorists breaking the rules. As a consequence, parking charges outside London have risen sharply while fi nes have not increased for nearly a decade. However, critics said


PARKER PENS


The winner of this year’s Ernest Davies Award is Harry Clarke, with his insightful piece of writing on outsourcing. Why enforcement is necessary, was the runner-up entry from George Cassavetis. All entrants are to be congratulated on their submissions. The winning entry


12 DECEMBER 2010


will be published in the Jan/Feb issue of Parking News. The other two shortlisted


authors were Chris Cook and Steve Dargonne.


that the move was an attempt to increase revenue at a time when local authorities face deep budget cuts. T e local authorities


argue that fi nes must rise to prevent a defi cit between the cost of parking provision and the income from parking. T is would result in council taxpayers having to make up the shortfall. ‘Taxpayers should


not have to subsidise other people’s parking infringements. Any increases would aff ect only the minority of motorists who get tickets,’ said McCunn. Motoring


organisations have


attacked the proposals. Paul Watters of the AA said it was illegal


Norman Baker said: ‘Parking rules are there to make sure traffi c fl ows smoothly for the benefi t of all motorists – but it is vital that the rules are enforced fairly and that penalties are proportionate. ‘T e BPA has raised


the issue of penalty charge levels with us and we will consider any evidence they provide. However, councils should remember that penalty charges exist to control parking, not as some sort of easy way of raising revenue. ‘I think motorists


will worry that this is perhaps a covert attempt to raise money from them unfairly. T at’s not the Department for Transport’s objective in any shape or form. ‘What we are doing is looking very objectively and very fairly at the evidence presented.’


association calendar


15 December 2010 Southern Regional Meeting Walton Room, Winchester Guildhall, Winchester


16 December 2010 EMS SIG


Institute of Highway Transportation


17 December 2010 Women in Parking Westminster Council, London


29-31 March 2011 Parkex


International NEC, Birmingham


PARKING PRIZES


The deadline for sending in entries to the 10th British Parking Awards is Friday 11 March. The British Parking Association is again proud to support the aims of the awards, and this year the Safer Parking Scheme is sponsoring the Best Refurbishment Awards.


The list of


categories and further information can be found on the website: www. britishparkingawards. co.uk


EPA NEWS


T e deadline for entries to the EPA Awards is 1 January. Promoting excellence in parking, entries can be made in four categories: new, renovated, on-street and innovative. Visit www.


europeanparking. eu for rules and regulations or contact the EPASecretariat: epa@ europeanparking.eu.


www.britishparking.co.uk


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