Post by JNugentPost by Mark GoodgePost by JNugentPost by Mark GoodgeI don't know about your council, but where I live they will only implement a
residents' parking scheme if at least 80% of the residents of the street
vote for it.
In reality, they are not the people who should have all of the say on
such matters.
Others are prejudiced by RPZs and should also be consulted and entitled
to vote.
Yes, but the point is that other people aren't complaining about the cost of
them.
Are they actually given a formal opportunity to do so?
Well, they wouldn't be complaining about the cost of them, since they're not
paying for them!
If you mean are they given a formal opportunity to respond to a
consultation, the answer is yes - like any other TRO, it has to be published
in advance and sufficient time given for people to comment before it can be
implemented. But, of course, it's impossible to personally contact every
driver who might possibly park in the street, so the notification has to go
out through the normal publicity channels - via the media, social media and
the highway authority's website.
Post by JNugentI for one have never been consulted in any form about a proposes RPZ.
Post by Mark GoodgeAnd, at least in my experience, other road users are informed in
advance and given the opportunity to comment.
How?
A notice has to be put up in the street giving details of the proposed
scheme, so anyone who does park there should see it. It will also be on the
highway authority's website and media feeds.
Post by JNugentIf I were consulted, I would object to every scheme on the basic
principle that the highway is for everyone.
That's not a valid objection. At least, it's not a valid objection to any
specific scheme. If you would like the law changed so that RP schemes are
outlawed, that's a perfectly legitimate aim. But that's not relevant to the
highway authority. The highway authority has to follow the law as it is, not
as you or others might like it to be.
Post by JNugentPost by Mark GoodgeThe 80% of residents in favour
is just one necessary condition, there are others. The question of where
displaced parking will go is an important consideration; one well-known
consequence of implenting an RP system is that it simply shifts the problem
to other residential streets. And sometimes, that's actually a worse place
for it to be an issue. So it isn't a given that a scheme will be implemented
even if the residents are 100% in favour.
There are better imaginable "solutions". You have more than hinted at that.
There are sometimes better solutions. There aren't always better solutions.
As a local councillor, I do get informed of proposals for new Residents'
Parking schemes and, if it's in my ward, I have a direct say on them. I
can't veto them (or impose them), but my opinion does carry weight. And,
FWIW, I do take a lot of persuading that an RP scheme is appropriate. My
test for whether it's an acceptable solution broadly revolve around these
requirements:
1. The overwhelming majority of householders living in the street must
support it (this is a requirement of the highway authority anyway, but I
fully agree with it).
2. The householders in the street must genuinely have no available
off-street parking either on their own property or within reasonable walking
distance of their property. Some people want residents' parking as well as
their own back yard. I don't think that's a good enough reason.
3. The problem experienced by the householders must be significantly more
than merely not being able to park in front of their own house. If they can
park in their own street then I wouldn't normally consider that a problem.
It only becomes a problem if they're having to park several streets away.
4. The likely effects of displaced parking as a consequence of the scheme
have been analysed and are not expected to create the same but worse issue
in nearby streets.
And, not a requirement as such because it doesn't always apply, but it is an
important consideration, particularly if any of the above are borderline:
5. The parking by non-residents is causing other problems in addition to
those experienced by residents. For example, traffic in residential streets
generally follows a broadly tidal flow, out in the morning and back in the
evening. If a significant number of people are heading in the opposite
direction in order to park in those streets (and then go home afterwards),
that can overload junctions and generate congestion which ripples out well
beyond the residential area itself. Also, daytime is typically when
tradesmen and delivery vans visit, and they also need somewhere on the
street to pull over in order to work or deliver. If they can't do that, then
that has a knock-on effect on their work as well as risking double-parking
which, again, creates congestion and safety issues.
So RP schemes can be justified, but there is, in my opinion, a high bar to
doing so. It has to be a genuine need, not just a want.
Mark