End the parking free-for-all

Those with reasonable memories may recall the discussions at the start of the year over Stirling Council’s priority-based budget.

Much of it centred on a proposal to generate between £100,000 and £200,000 by doubling music tuition fees from £246 a year to £492 for around 850 pupils of Stirling schools.

That was, of course, withdrawn after hundreds backed a petition against the move.

There were also expectations in the PBB that the council would in 2016-17 raise £35,000 from parking fines once they took over on-street parking enforcement from Police Scotland .

It now look as if that potential income stream has also dried up.

Council-employed wardens were due to hit the street in the summer but that was put back to early November because Transport Scotland, who have to approve the move, were bogged down with similar applications from other authorities.

However, as environment convener Danny Gibson told us on Tuesday, the“mood music”from Transport Scotland was that the go-ahead would not now be given until at least March.

Others in the council believe it could be next summer before the matter is resolved.

Some councillors are secretly pleased with this turn of events. They feared complaints from traders as the new parking enforcement regime coincided with the Christmas rush.

Not so pleased will be, for example, residents at the Top of Town and traders in Friars Street and Upper Craigs who are fed up with indiscriminate parking near their homes, businesses and schools.

Since March, when the area’s two traffic wardens left their jobs, there has been a parking free-for-all in our city and town centres.

Police officers have done their best to curb illegal parking but they have other more pressing matters to which they should be attending.

It is almost three years since Police Scotland announced they were intending to withdraw from on-street parking enforcement.

That decision has caused major, unexpected problems for the council but the task of bringing a semblance of parking order to the streets must be made a priority.

John Rowbotham, Editor

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