Agenda item - Parking Annual Report 2016-17

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Agenda item

Parking Annual Report 2016-17

Report of the Executive Director, Economy, Environment & Culture

Decision:

1)           That the Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee endorses the publication of the Parking Annual Report for 2016-17 under the provisions of the Traffic Management Act 2004.

 

2)           That the Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee authorises the Head of Parking to produce and publish the report which will be made available on the Council’s website and to stakeholders.

Minutes:

28.1      The Committee considered a report of the Executive Director, Economy, Environment & Culture that requested approval of the publication of the Parking Annual Report 2016-17 for submission to the Department for Transport, Traffic Penalty Tribunal and for general publication under the provisions of the Traffic Management Act 2004.

 

28.2      The Chair commended officers for the high standard of the Annual Report.

 

28.3      Councillor Peltzer Dunn stated that he generally opposed transaction charges and hoped that the income from that could be specified in future reports. Councillor Peltzer Dunn added that he felt the council made it difficult for people to park in some areas and whilst he understood payments could be made in some PayPoint outlets, in some cases the nearest PayPoint shop was a quarter of a mile away from the parking location. Such a journey was exceptionally difficult for people with mobility issues.

 

28.4      Councillor Wares noted that page 13 of the draft Annual Report detailed that no electric vehicle permits had been issued as of July 2017. Councillor Wares added that whilst he understood that electric vehicles were allowed to park for free at charging points for up to four hours, the council would have to observant of any abuses of that time limit as electric vehicle ownership became more common. Referring to page 37 of the draft Annual Report, Councillor Wares noted that there were capital borrowing costs relating to as long ago as 2001 and asked whether consideration had been given to restructuring that borrowing. In addition, Councillor Wares observed that there was a large amount of detail in the report on enforcement action taken in the city yet the majority of this enforcement was carried out in the city centre alone. As controlled parking zone areas became wider, displacement was now widespread in suburban areas and more effective enforcement support was desperately needed in those areas.

 

28.5      The Policy & Development Manager stated that the transaction charge for Pay by Phone parking had formerly been 15p and had reduced to 10p due to the increase in transactions as the scheme had become more popular. The charge was exactly self-financing and there would be a significant charge to the council if that transaction charge was removed. The Policy & Development Manager informed the committee that there were 150 PayPoint outlets in the city where payment could be made and this was a complimentary service provided to Pay by Phone. In some instances, there was a large distance between parking areas and the nearest PayPoint location however; there were 150 parking machines in the city that continued to accept cash and card payments. The Policy & Development Manager clarified that electric vehicles permits had been disbanded to allow visitors to the city to be able to use the points. Furthermore, officers would be grateful for any interaction from ward councillors about better forms of parking enforcement.

 

28.6      Councillor Wares that suburban areas, such as his ward in Patcham, needed enforcement officers operating to the same methods as in the city centre rather than a targeted approach.

 

28.7      The Assistant Director- City Transport provided assurance that officers were looking at ways to redress the balance in enforcement in the city centre and outer areas of the city.

 

28.8      Councillor West stated that he supported the comments made by Councillor Wares that people were not adhering to parking regulations and an increase in enforcement was required on the basis of safety. Councillor West noted that there had been decrease in slight collisions however; fatalities and serious casualties had increased. Councillor West stated that this was cause for concern and a more detailed breakdown should be provided. Councillor West stated he was glad the parking surplus had increased however; he was concerned that there had been a gradual reduction in spending from that income in supported bus services, other public services and capital investment perhaps related to the increase in concessionary fare rises. In addition, Councillor West stated that investment was desperately needed in Oxford Court car park as it had now become a serious crime and anti-social behaviour hotspot due to its deteriorating state. Part of that consideration, if the problems could not easily be solved, could be an alternative way for that space to be used.

 

28.9      The Chair stated that in relation to the points made on decreasing investment in supported bus services, Policy, Resources & Growth Committee had recently agreed an additional £150,000 to be invested in the services from an unallocated underspend meaning there were now more supported routes, not less.

 

28.10   Councillor Page stated that in relation to the casualty figures, a detailed breakdown would be very useful particularly in terms of vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists.

 

28.11   The Head of Parking Services stated that a breakdown of casualty and collision figures could be provided to Councillor Page subsequent to the meeting.

 

28.12   Councillor Wares noted that his query on capital borrowing costs had not been addressed. Councillor Wares added that it was appropriate that he draw attention to the fact that the No56 bus service to Patcham had been reduced by half without any consultation and to the significant inconvenience to residents, some of whom were elderly.

 

28.13   The Assistant Director- City Transport clarified that the council had been operating CPZ’s since 2001 with some of that borrowing paid back. Generally, it took seven years for scheme’s to pay back their initial investment so the information on debt and financing would most likely relate to the previous seven years. Opportunities to restructure the debt would be discussed with colleagues in Finance.

 

28.14   RESOLVED-

 

1)           That the Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee endorse the publication of the Parking Annual Report for 2016-17 under the provisions of the Traffic Management Act 2004.

 

2)           That the Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee authorises the Head of Parking to produce and publish the report which will be made available on the Council’s website and to stakeholders.

Supporting documents:

 


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