Bradford District parking charges
The petition of residents of the Bradford District,
Declares that the proposed increase in car parking charges across the Bradford District and the introduction of new charges for residents’ parking permits will place an unfair financial burden on residents and workers; notes concern that individuals are now being required by Bradford Council to pay to park outside their own homes; and further declares that new charges will adversely affect small businesses and retail outlets.
The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Government to encourage Bradford Council to reverse the proposed increases to car parking charges, and the new parking permit charges, across Keighley and Ilkley.
And the petitioners remain, etc.—[Presented by Robbie Moore, Official Report, 29 October 2024; Vol. 755, c. 910.]
[P003018]
Observations from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Lilian Greenwood):
The Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 and the Traffic Management Act 2004 are the governing pieces of legislation. Bradford city council is a local traffic authority, responsible for managing and regulating traffic on its roads. The legislation grants the council a range of powers to use in doing so.
Local authorities can set their own off-street and on-street parking charges (i.e. the price to park) under sections 35 and 46 respectively of the RTRA, but the Government, through statutory guidance to which local authorities must have regard, encourage them to carefully consider the impact on motorists when doing so. Local authorities may vary parking charges via a notice under regulation 25 of the Local Authorities’ Traffic Orders (Procedure) (England and Wales) Regulations 1996.
Statutory guidance recommends that a local authority sets its parking charges as part of meeting its wider parking strategy to meet its network management duty under section 16 of the TMA. It also says that parking policies should be proportionate, support town centre prosperity and reconcile competing demands for kerb space.
The objective of local parking policies is not to raise revenue. Section 55 of the RTRA requires any surplus raised from parking schemes to be directed to local authority-funded transport or environmental schemes.
Private car park owners are free to set their own parking terms and conditions. Responsibility for setting parking charges on local roads rests with the local authorities, who are best placed to balance the needs of residents, emergency services, local business and those who work in and visit the area.
I believe that setting on-street parking charges should remain the responsibility of local authorities, in accordance with powers available in the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 and with their various statutory duties. As well as the level of charges, authorities can also decide how charges are applied; an example is differential charges for certain classes of vehicles, such as those with diesel engines. Decisions by authorities should reflect the objectives of their local transport plans.
The Secretary of State’s “Statutory Guidance to Local Authorities on the Civil Enforcement of Parking Contraventions” advocates that parking charges should be proportionate and should not be set at unreasonable levels. It also recommends that local authorities appraise their parking policies regularly, including parking charges, to ensure that they remain fit for purpose. The public and the police should be consulted as part of the appraisal process.