clareville
Registered: 06/04/09
Posts: 1
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| #16 |
I noticed a request in The Town Crier for shorter metered/charged times in the car parks.
I agree with this idea. Most times I use the town centre car parks is for less than 20 minutes and I feel aggrieved at having to pay for a full hour.
Would it be possible to introduce a minimum time of 20 minutes?
This would ultimately generate more revenue, as I'm sure that many of the tickets, having only been used for only 5 or 10 minutes, get 'donated' to other drivers entering the car park or waiting to feed the ticket machine... 
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rock2009
Registered: 15/04/09
Posts: 2
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| #17 |
I live in the South Park area of Darlington, we have 6 residents spaces for 47 houses in my street, since the Post Office stopped letting their staff park in the depot grounds they now park in my street the same goes for people using the railway station. This is to avoid paying the parking charges in the car parks at the station and near the back of the fire station
On Friday night quite late my girlfriend had to park in the residents area as there was no where else to park, we were loading the car up early Saturday to go to the lakes and at 09:07 a warden had just slapped a ticket on the car, I understand he cant take it back and did apologise and told me to dispute it which I have, this takes up more of my time and effort.
Why is nothing done to stop non residents parking there to save money,my girlfriend darent park her care even in another street as it has been damaged, the police dop nothing its jjust more figures for their stats,its about time the council stopped spending my council tax on poxy flower beds and provide a decent service for residents sorry but I dont have time to wander the streets of Darlington admiring the councils efforts to win Britain in bloom I have a job.
Please try spending my council tax on complete residnts parking so my girlfriend could park near my house so we could keep an eye on the car, even your site says she is not entitled to a temp permit.
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DBC1
Moderator
Registered: 02/07/08
Posts: 18
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| #18 |
I can appreciate that the parking ticket has annoyed you and can sympathise with the apparent impact non-residential traffic is having in your street and the wider area. I cannot comment further on the issues surrounding the issue of the ticket as this will be dealt with via the appeal process. You do however raise two valid points pertaining to parking enforcement: Firstly, it is worth pointing out that resident parking zones were implemented to help residents to park in the vicinity of their houses in areas that suffered from excessive non-residential parking. These zones have been implemented over a number of years and surveys were carried out to determine appropriate resident parking levels for each road within the zones. Residents were then consulted and their views were used to make amendments to the proposals. The schemes that have been developed have therefore evolved from a mixture of on-street observation and resident's requests. That said things change over time. Car ownership in some roads increase and diminish in others. External factors such as the Post Office staff parking also create issues. It is therefore important that we review the resident parking zones from time to time, to see if they are working as intended. We are committed to reviewing all of our zones once Civil Parking Enforcement has been implemented. If you provide the name of your road we will ensure that the issue is logged for consideration when the review takes place. You can do this by calling (01325) 388746, or replying to this post. If conditions for residents have worsened since the zone was implemented we could look at providing additional resident's spaces. The policy of not issuing visitor permits will also be considered as part of the review. Your comment has been logged in that respect. Supply of, and demand for resident parking spaces can be fairly fluid. You obviously think more spaces are needed in your area, elsewhere we have had comments that their are too many resident's spaces. Your comments will be taken forward to the review and further consideration will be given to the number of spaces in your road. Thank you for your comments. |
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DBC1
Moderator
Registered: 02/07/08
Posts: 18
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| #19 |
The following post was sent to the Forum on April 14. Darlington Council officers responded privately to this posting, but the forum member has asked that the 'conversation' is made public. Please read the messages below between NAllen and our officers:
| | Subject: Car parking enforcement | | | Posted By: NAllan | | | | Re: Parking Enforcement
Concern No.1 PARKING BAYS NEED REMARKING AS PER GOVERNMENT GUIDELINES Two years ago my wife received a parking ticket because she strayed 2" outside of a bay in the Commercial St. car park. Initially I appealed against the ticket without success even though I explained she was forced to park in that position due to the way the adjacent cars had parked forcing her to park her vehicle slightly outside of the bay.The bays were very narrow measuring only 2.10 metres. I pointed out that government guidelines on parking bays state widths should be 2.40 metres but again the council refused to cancel the ticket so I approached the Northern Echo and local BBC radio. The support from the general public was overwhelming and the Council soon cancelled the ticket and wrote to me stating that as a new shopping complex was scheduled for construction on that particular site in 2008 there was no plans to remark the bays to the correct width. It is 2009 and the narrow bays remain ! Furthermore, there is a significant number of bays in the Beaumont St car park which are even narrower, some as narrow as 1800mm ???? It is time that the Council corrected this and gave the motorists who actually pay to use these car parks a fair deal. Narrow bays are the cause of expensive parking accidents and parking tickets - fact! My concern is that any overhaul of the enforcement procedures will guarantee an increase in the number of overzealous attendants issuing tickets in unfair and unreasonable circumstances because in many instances the parking bays are too narrow. This has been pointed out in the past and the Council is aware but nothing has been done about it. Concern No.2 I have lived in Kensington Gardens for almost 20 years and during this time there has been a significant increase in the number of cars per household. Many vehicles are parked 1/2 on the road and 1/2 on the verges which in bad weather churns up the grass into a quagmire.Many of the surrounding roads ie.Geneva Road have had their verges tarmacked allowing vehicles to park in a safer manner without ruining the grass and causing an eyesore. My question is:Would the new "regime" issue tickets to motorists that park with two wheels on the grass verges - I hope not as my daughters have to do this when they visit to avoid blocking the road which is too narrow to allow two cars to park opposite each other and still allow traffic to pass.Is there any plans to tarmac parts of Kensington Gardens as I know that a number of residents have approached the Council about this. I trust these points will receive due consideration, Mr.N.Allan |
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On April 16, DBC officers replied to NAllen with the following message:
Dear Mr Allan
Thank you for your comments relating to the parking consultation that is on-going at the moment. I have chosen to reply to you on a personal level rather than posting a reply on the forum because the issues you raise are of individual nature. However, If you wish these issues to be posted to the forum I am happy to do so.
The process of taking responsibility for enforcement of parking restrictions from the Police has required us to review the way we operate parking in the town both on a day to day basis and on a long term basis. The two draft documents, published for comment, explain how we intend to operate and our long term vision. This consultation is identifying many issues where we can make improvements and all of the points received are being considered.
On the specific issues you raise we are currently undertaking a review of all waiting restrictions in the Borough both on-street and in off-street car parks. This needs to be completed before we adopt the powers from the Police. I note your concerns regarding the size of the parking bays and the concern that this could result in overzealous enforcement. I can ensure you this is not the intention and our draft Parking Charter that is published on Page 3 of the Civil Parking Enforcement Procedures document commits us to provide the best possible service whilst being fair but firm.
In relation to Kensington Gardens you raise two issues:-
1. The condition of the grass verges.
Unfortunately, many of our residential estates are not able to cope with the demands by residents for on street parking caused by increased car ownership levels over recent decades. All highways including verges are inspected on a regular basis as we have a duty to ensure the safety of highway users from defects. Where we identify problems these will be rectified by the most appropriate solution. In terms of verges there are 3 options - repair, prevent parking by bollards/fencing or verge hardening. The solution is very much dependant on the local circumstances and resources available.
Kensington Gardens is on a list of areas that have requested verge hardening and we continue to work through this list on an annual basis with the resources we have available for this type of work. Unfortunately, given the number of requests we receive from around the Borough this list contains many locations and will take many years to complete. We will continue to inspect and take any necessary action.
2. The enforcement policy for parking on footways and verges.
If a yellow line restriction exists on the road then this also applies to the footway and verge so we would be proposing to enforce in these circumstances. However, where yellow lines do not exist the Council must consider circumstances on an individual basis and decide whether to ban footway or verge parking. This would require the Council to progress through consultation and a legal order and signs would need to be in place to advise motorists of the ban. Whilst, this may be appropriate in some locations in the Borough it is possibly not a blanket approach that would be adopted. We are developing our thoughts on this through the consultation process. For example, this issue is a real concern for our visually impaired and disabled citizens whose safe routes can be completely blocked by parked cars wholly on the footway. The consultation will hopefully draw out many points of view to help us formulate our policy. I note your concerns in relation to introducing such a policy in a residential area.
I trust you can recognise that there is a balance to be developed between allowing parking and preventing it and we aim to ensure we adopt the right balance in terms of all the needs of the various highway users.
Once again, thank you for your comments.
On May 1, NAllen replied to DBC officers with the following message:
Thank you for your response. I've just arrived back from holiday today otherwise I would have replied sooner.
With regard to your response relating to Kensington Gardens, parking on verges, budgets etc - I fully understand and accept this.
What I believe needs a definitive answer is
- Does the council accept that there are a significant number of parking spaces in various parks within the town centre that are unreasonably small ?
- If yes, what is the plan to rectify them to "proper" sizes. It is not reasonable or fair to leave them as they are (some as narrow as 1800mm) and have parking instructions posted within the car parks stating "motorists should park wholly within the marked bays". If the bay is the same width as the car I think most drivers would have a problem parking it unless they don't want to actually get out of it and leave to do some shopping etc. On a serious point, the bays do need remarking to a width somewhere approaching the government guidelines of 2400mm. I do also appreciate that revenue will suffer slightly because you won't be cramming as many cars in. The big plus side to the people using the car parks - they will be able to park easier, get out of the car easier, get back in easier, less risk of damage from car doors and less risk of damage caused through slow speed manoeuvring knocks by other cars trying to shuffle into narrow spaces.
Based on the tremendous amount of media and public support I received when I challenged the council over a ticket issued relating to a "narrow bay" I believe it would be beneficial to post any response in the public forum
I would welcome your comments in due course.
DBC officers then replied to NAllen with the following message:
Dear Mr Allan
Thank you for your comments. I will arrange to get the comments and replies posted on the Forum. The consultation is raising a number of issues and we genuinely want views to help improve the service. We are in the process of undertaking surveys of all signs and lines in both car parks and on-street parking areas. The issues that are identified, like the one you mention, will be considered on an individual basis. Our overall aim is to improve parking facilities. I trust that once this is complete and the actions arising from the parking strategy start to be implemented you will see improvements.
If you would like to respond to any of these messages, please do so by replying to this post.
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