- The document discusses parking control and enforcement in the UK, noting that over 4.7 million parking penalty charge notices (PCNs) were issued last year, with 18% of drivers receiving one.
- It provides rationales for managing parking, including safety, addressing excess parking demand, resolving conflicting demands, raising revenue for local governments, reducing congestion, and tackling climate change.
- Congestion from cruising for parking costs an estimated £10 billion annually in the UK, demonstrating the economic rationale for parking enforcement and management.
Good morning In deciding whether to sign up for today’s conference I wonder how many of you flicked through the programme and thought Drivers Charter – TfL sounds interesting Fighting fraud – yes definitely need to hear about that Use of CCTV and ANPR – certainly could learn from that School gate parking – as a school governor with serious issues in this – I would sign up Then you saw an economist down to speak – and I sure that persuaded on you spot that you had to come Or sadly and perhaps more realistically you possibly thought doesn’t matter if I’m late getting there as what on earth as an economist got to do with parking enforcement. Economics is all about ensuring the right allocation of scarce resources – what could be more in tune with the present “Age of austerity “
Parking and its enforcement is a large and important business – some 9m PCNs issued in a year Almost a fifth of all car drivers get at least one a year – increasing to a third of 16-34 yr olds
So why do we manage parking and issue 9m PCNs a year – other than the motoring public’s inability to park correctly I’m sure you can add to the list – which seems to get ever longer with tackling climate change being a recent addition to all the other factors those in the parking industry need to think off when setting enforcement policies. What would happen if we didn’t enforce parking
Sadly far to many motorists are to selfish or idol to consider other people when they pull up a zebra’s zig zag or those double yellow lines they feel are just there because the council wanted to use up some spare yellow paint. While these figures reflect accidents caused by both stationary and parked cars and are therefore a slight over estimate of the cost of unsafe parking it is still a frightening figure that they cause nearly 100 deaths a year. So even with enforcement unsafe parking costs the economy around £600m a year – providing a clear rationale for enforcement
There is a considerable and on-going debate about the price of parking and the “need” for free or cheap parking to attract the punters in. But if people cant park then they don’t come in the first place – or they turn up cant find a space and head off home again disappointed RAC Foundation research found that over 40% of car owners had abandoned a trip due to lack of parking Drive into most major cities and you immediately see the problem – a lack of parking spaces Anyone here from Westminster? Westminster probably has one of the most sophisticated parking policies – but even here highest price for on-street parking is £4.40 an hour and its free on Sundays compared to £5-8 for private off street car parks Why give shop workers free all day parking while your customers can’t park From an economic perspective the ideal is flexible pricing by time of day/ day of week and location – at a price that ensures that around 15% of spaces are free
For local authorities a key problem arises from the pressure they are under to prioritise competing demands for parking space Key pressures are between residents and commuters/shoppers and in town centres between commuters and shoppers On any weekday some 1.6m commuters’ cars are parked on street often in direct competition with other users – and we know that commuters are prepared to walk 20mins+ to benefit from free parking – pushing the problem deep into residential areas The result is 1.2m households live in areas where they require a permit to park their car on the road Another 0.5m commuters’ cars are parking in public car parks often in competition with shoppers and other visitors While at the end of day some 7m cars are parked on street – often because we are using our garages for other purposes
So councils use parking permits to prioritise demand in residential areas and this is where things start to get tricky Is this a business that the council is operating with the aim of generating revenue or a service to its residents Few councils seem to be clear – suggesting that a residential controlled parking zone should aim to be revenue neutral was met with amazement in one local authority recently So councils try to get there parking permit policy be all things to all people – It should be market based so price varies by location in line with private parking charges No everyone should be treated equally no matter where they live so single price across the council – whisper it quietly but one council doesn’t charge for its permits Climate change means we are trying to get people to use lower emission vehicle so lets charge by emission band – interestingly an idea taken up by each of the 3 main parties We should be trying to reduce car ownership so only one permit per household – ah a way of increasing revenue lets charge more for additional cars We should be supporting local business so provide them with permits – why should commercial operators get cheap parking charge them full commercial rates Are we treating everyone fairly – exemptions for all – health visitors, ministers of religion to members of the local bowling club and MPs Parking permits reflect an estimated £1bn subsidy to motorists
In 2008-9 English councils generated £1.3bn from parking – in net terms around £350m But London is responsible for almost half of that revenue (both gross and net) And nearly a third of net revenue was generated by just five boroughs – for Westminster parking revenue is broadly the same as it collects from the council tax For the rest of England parking is not a cash cow – in fact 100 English authorities lost money on parking – some £60m So why subsidise parking
some 7m cars are parked on street – often because we are using our garages for other purposes £60k parking space in St Ives London 20K standard – up to £80k not exceptional Rent 2500-6000k Manchester suburbs £600 – central £1200