New Regulations will make for fairer parking for all
0049/ir
3rd April 2008
On 31 March 2008 new regulations were
introduced in England and Wales that herald the first nationwide
changes to on-street parking since 1993. The regulations
should provide motorists with a fairer and more transparent parking
enforcement service across the country, helping raise industry
standards in parking.
What was called Decriminalised Parking
Enforcement will now be referred to as Civil Parking Enforcement
(CPE) and, legally speaking, Parking Attendants have become Civil
Enforcement Officers, although many areas will still see the
familiar Parking Attendant on duty.
The new Regulations require Civil Parking
Enforcement to be more transparent, simple and proportional to
motorists level of infringement. In line with these
regulations, Crewe and Nantwich Borough Council has already made
its parking management policies clear and available on its website
and in printed leaflets. It will undertake regular reviews of
policies through consultation and communicate these policies
effectively to the public. It has also provided the right
training for everyone involved in parking management and
enforcement.
Additional powers are being given to
independent adjudicators. They will be able to refer cases
back to the Chief Executives of Local Authorities’ where a parking
contravention has taken place in mitigating circumstances and can
ask the Local Authority to consider cancelling the penalty
charge.
Enforcement will now be "proportional" to the contravention's
seriousness, with new regulations providing for differential
charges. Higher penalties will apply for such matters as parking on
a double yellow line and a lesser charge for overstaying on a
meter. Crewe and Nantwich Council’s Board recently approved
the new penalty charges to apply as follows: £70 higher penalty,
and £50 lower penalty, in line with Government guidelines.
Keith Banbury, Chief Executive of the BPA,
said: "Civil Parking Enforcement is good news for everyone.
Lower penalty charges for less serious contraventions will make the
system fairer for the motorist; more transparent financial
reporting will allow parking professionals to demonstrate that this
is not about raising revenue; the new referral powers for
adjudicators should promote fairness and linking parking
enforcement to transport policies will make the whole system more
accountable locally.”
Banbury continued: “Everyone hates
congestion and delays to journeys and effective parking management
and enforcement is there to help improve traffic flow and ensure
the roads are safer for all road users, including motorists and
pedestrians. We live in a country with 32 million cars and need to
manage parking fairly for all. These new regulations aim to do just
that.”
COUNCIL
CONTACT: Paul Burns – Business
Development Manager
TELEPHONE: 01270
537805
EMAIL: paul.burns@crewe-nantwich.gov.uk
For Media enquiries contact:
Ian Richardson - 01270 537018
http://www.crewe-nantwich.gov.uk/