Drivers who stay too long on council owned car parks are to get a 10 minute leeway before being fined, the government has announced…
Expected to take effect later this month, the new leeway will apply to free and paid-for-parking spaces on both streets and off-street car parks.
The 10 minute grace is one of several changes announced by the government including: guidance for councils reminding them they are banned from ‘using parking to generate profit’; and, a right for residents and businesses to demand – by a petition – that a council “reviews parking in their area”.
Announcing the new measures, Community Secretary Eric Pickles said he wants to end the “war on drivers”.
“For too long parking rules have made law-abiding motorists feel like criminals, and caused enormous damage to shops and businesses.
“Over-zealous parking enforcement undermines our town centres and costs councils more in the long term.”
Other measures to be introduced include:
– new powers for parking adjudicators so they can “hold councils to account”;
– protection to stop drivers being fined after parking at out-of-order meters;
– And, a ban on the use of CCTV “spy cars” except in no-parking areas such as bus lanes and near schools.
According to figures from the RAC Foundation, councils in England made a combines surplus of £667 million from their on and off-street parking operations in 2013-14.
