Trial parking plan to thwart all-day parking is rolled out to more city roads
INITIAL SCHEME TO DISCOURAGE CITY WORKERS FROM HOGGING SPOTS THROUGHOUT THE DAY
AN experimental traffic scheme to tackle commuter parking in a city neighbourhood is being extended to cover more streets.
The measures, which came into effect in February, aim to target the problem of commuter parking in Clarendon Park.
For the past eight months, trial measures have been in place restricting non-residents from parking in streets immediately adjacent to Queen’s Road between 9.30am and 10.30am, thus preventing commuters who work in the city centre from parking there.
It is part of an effort by ward councillors in the area who have called on Leicester City Council to look at ways to prevent commuters using residential streets for free, all-day parking.
Martin Fletcher, Leicester City Council’s director of highways, said: “Officers have been working closely with ward councillors for some time to find effective solutions to the long-standing problems with commuter parking in Clarendon Park.
“The initial stages of this experimental scheme appear to be going well and have helped free up lots of parking spaces for residents, visitors and customers using nearby shops and businesses.”
Measures aim to still enable customers to use the parking spaces when visiting nearby shops throughout the day, but set out to stop commuters from outside the area from using streets to park free all day.
It is estimated that the scheme is helping to free up about 150 to 200 parking spaces each day for use by residents, shoppers and visitors coming into the area.
The first phase will now run until January, while the city council continues to survey and monitor its effectiveness.
A second phase is now being introduced which will extend the trial measures into about 20 nearby streets in the Clarendon Park Road and Welford Road area, where commuter parking is still a problem. The new experimental order will include: Adderley Road; Ashford Road; Avenue Road Extension; Brentwood Road; Brookland Road; Bulwer Road; Cross Road; Fleetwood Road; Hartopp Road; Keble Road; Leopold Road; Lorne Road; Lytham Road; Lytton Road; Portland Road; Thurlow Road and Westbury Road. Residents of parts of Clarendon
Park Road, Queens Road, Victoria Park Road and Welford Road will also be eligible for permits. The second phase will run on an experimental basis until March, at least.
The council said permits are available to residential and business properties in the area, and people will not be charged for permits during the trial period.
If the scheme proves successful and is adopted on a permanent basis, residents will need to pay an annual £25 charge.
Provision will also be made for essential visitors such as carers, as well as Blue Badge holders.
The measures were introduced following a call from Castle ward councillors Danny Myers, Patrick Kitterick and Deborah Sangster to address problems with commuter parking in Clarendon Park.
Similar measures are in place in parts of Nottingham and London.
Mr Fletcher said: “We are now in the process of carefully monitoring the scheme before a decision is made on whether it should be made permanent.
“We are also responding to requests from residents by extending these experimental measures to other streets in the area.”
The initial stages appear to be going well and have helped free up lots of parking spaces
Martin Fletcher