Forum Topic

CPZs

Would be grateful for any views on CPZs as our area is undergoing a consultation process.  Do they work ?  What are the problems - if any. Parking Mon-Fri is currently a nightmare so we are hoping a CPZ would be the solution.

Pat Kingham ● 6351d27 Comments

Thanks, Linda, for organising this as part of your meeting. Prices are set by the Executive and so I am happy to lobby them if that is what the meeting asks, though the amounts were set just a fortnight ago at the last full council meeting. It's also worth pointing out that it's £40 for a scheme monitored for two hours during the day rather than throughout the day.I'm pleased that you are asking everybody to reply, as this is an important decision and we want to be guided by full participation. Your point about streets who say 'no' wanting to reconsider is adjacent streets say yes is well-made.Matt HarmerBrentford ward councillorLB Hounslow

Matt Harmer ● 6335d

The Boston Manor (Hanwell Scheme) and the Northfields scheme which I am in both operate on a twice a day system.  Based on your comments Maggie this would be better for you but in the Boston Manor area we have to remember that students of the Paragon and the staff of GSK come in and out at all times so may not work.The "guest" vouchers for the schemes mentioned are for either a half day or a full day rather than by the hour which makes life a little easier.

Linda Massey ● 6335d

"you just have to remember to put a voucher on visitors cars at the appropriate time" - that's the bit that really annoys me.  If my friends or family want to pop in for a cup of tea, I have to know roughly how long they are going to stay, I have to watch the clock in case they stay longer than expected and I have to remember to have in a supply of not only 3 hourly but all day permits, and I have to make sure that I scratch off all the relevant bits because if you make an honest mistake its very expensive.  A simple visit from a friend becomes more like a military operation.  It really bugs me and could be so much better if the hours of operation were just one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

Maggie Dodge ● 6335d

I have read the entire cpz thread in one go with interest.  I am an Ealing resident but represent as Chair of Boston Manor Residents' Association streets currently being consulted.  All houses within the BMRA (Brentford) patch will, by the end of this weekend, receive a flyer urging them to respond to the Councils consultation. They are also invited to attend our AGM to be held at Elthorne Park High School,W7 Wednesday 9th April at 7.30 pm where there will be council representation.  1.  BMRA believe that the proposed cost of £60 is far too high (this was also said four years ago during the last consultation period) and would like to see it set at £25 which is the figure set by Ealing for the new CPZ scheme just over the bridge implemented in January this year.2.  The streets that opted out of the scheme are now regretting it as they are suffering the strains of computer parking and are begging Ealing to "take them in".  No money, no chance for at least a year!3.  I am in a cpz zone which works very well.  Admitedly I have a drive - you just have to remember to put a voucher on visitors cars at the appropriate time.4.  With GSK staff only being able to park in their car park three weeks out of four (and contractors cannot park at all) there is always going to be a problem in the Boston Manor area unless a cpz scheme is brought in.HOUNSLOW COUNCILLORS - I suspect if you reduce your price you will get a better response and therefore receive fewer complaints!

Linda Massey ● 6335d

Meeting to be held in St Faiths Church, Windmill Road, Brentford,to guage opinion 7pm Tuesday 18th all welcome.  Five years ago we were all against this scheme and fought it off successfully, but has opinion changed? come along had have your say.

Jo Smith ● 6344d

Afterthought. It would have been much more sensible for Ealing TVU to have introduced and policed a no-car attendance by students, with sanctions, to reduce problems for residents. The problems stemming from the CPZ are now spread over a much wider area, many years later.Perhaps Paragon TVU and Glaxo-Smith-Kline should be approached by councillors/residents association?

Robert Darke ● 6344d

A bit of a minefield really, and handing over control to any Council is a worry.  I often find difficulty parking near my home when I arrive back late.  Even just a couple of roads away is a different CPZ zone. Now that we have the dreaded CPZ in my street, I would much prefer if they would make each Borough just one large zone, to give more freedom and allow us to park for free in nearby areas. At least give it a try.

Maggie Dodge ● 6345d

Another few things to bear in mind:1. Once CPZ is implemented the annual charge is in the hands of the council - I have friends in L. B. of Hammersmith & Fulham who paid £50 the first year then the council hiked it up to £90 the second year!2.  Not all CPZs allow visitor permits.  However, if they do, I understand that if you do not have a car/do not pay for the annual CPZ permit yourself (e.g. you park on a driveway) then you are not entitled to purchase visitor permits for your guests/tradesmen.3.  Although you pay an annual fee you are not guaranteed a parking space and many CPZ schemes are oversubscribed, in some cases by over 30%.4.  Most schemes run Mon-Fri until 6.00/6.30pm.  So if you drive to work by the time you get home to park the CPZ is not in operation. Or if you live near a weekend/evening attraction (e.g. pub) it doesn't help either.5.  Some schemes operate on Bank Holidays (can catch you out over the Christmas period!).

Lynn Clark ● 6345d

Thanks for that Paul, I live in W4 but come under Ealing Council.I spend most of my time in Chiswick and sometimes forget I don't live in the borough.

Maggie Dodge ● 6346d

My apologies Maggie,I am a Councillor for the Borough of Hounslow and wrongly assumed you lived here and not in Ealing.It is still worth contacting your neighbours and Ward Councillor where you live though and I hope you get the result you wish for.Best wishesPaul

Paul Fisher ● 6346d

What exactly does that mean Paul?  Are you connected to the Council?I have e-mailed Ealing's Parking Services and asked how I would go about having the hours of our CPZ changed and I will await with interest their reply.  I am keen now to try and get something done, and happy to prove myself wrong about the Council.

Maggie Dodge ● 6346d

I am sure you will glad to hear that Hounslow Council is at this moment conducting a complete Parking Policy Scrutiny Review which I will be happy to forward you any details if you wish?

Paul Fisher ● 6346d

If the Council had our best interest at heart, they would stop their parking attendants from issuing tickets for silly reasons, such as wheels slightly outside the lines, making minute mistakes on the scratch off visitor's permits. Towing away when a ticket would suffice etc etc. Maybe then we would stop thinking its all about the money.

Maggie Dodge ● 6346d

You are quite right. In Ealing once the Council seen how much money they could make they put in cpzs everywhere,and remember its them who tell you the results of their survey you dont get to count the votes.

Robert Ayres ● 6346d

I would suggest having a chat with your neighbours Maggie to gauge the opinion of others and then contacting one of your Ward Councillors who could then discuss the options available to proceed.

Paul Fisher ● 6346d

People vote for the scheme because parking is difficult.  They often don't know how it will affect them until they have experienced it.  Now that I realise how restrictive the all day hours are, and how unnecessary they are when just a couple of hours would do, how do I go about getting things modified?

Maggie Dodge ● 6346d

The Council will only "introduce" these schemes after a request from residents and then only implement them after a due consultation exercise has been made and the majority who respond were in favour and it has been to the local Area Committee.Some recent schemes approved have indeed had conditions attached such as just two hours a day etc so with respect you are way off the mark with your comments.

Paul Fisher ● 6346d

The Council only introduce these to line their pockets, they couldn't care less about your parking problems.  If they did they would make a one off charge to implement them and then limit the restrictions to one hour twice a day which would cost a limited amount to monitor.  Instead they make them all day and rake in the cash.

Maggie Dodge ● 6346d

I lived in the first cpz area in Ealing. It was a nightmare. Before its introduction the area around The Park W5 had parking for 1700 vehicles when the Council finished marking up the roads we had parking space for 800. We were told that we would be allowed to park in any new cpz within the borough this was untrue. We soon found out what madness it was, small local shops closed,anytime we called a tradesman his price went because of the parking,family and friends could not find a space even if you had a visitors permit. I moved my home and buisness to Brentford to escape it. So be very carefull with cpzs once a Council introduces it they will not take it out.

Robert Ayres ● 6347d

Many CPZs are too draconian when a one hour restriction in the morning and another in the afternoon would be adequate to stop all-day parking. This means you don`t become a no-go area for friends, family and services and lose shops.There is a good paper by Kingsdown Residents Association KRA which also covers the Ealing TVU accessible on westealingneighbours.org.uk - look for the CPZ tab and then KRA.

Robert Darke ● 6347d

Holly - layton Rd is being included in the CPZ consultation following my intevention. It's not a solution to everything and there will be a cost involved for permits but the funding for consultation and, if accepted, inception is there from the GSK and Paragon buildings.The consultation documents will, I'm told, be arriving in the next couple of weeks.

Matt Harmer ● 6349d

We live in the RFU Rugby Match Day CPZ - granted it doesn't cost us anything as it is funded by the RFU - although that hasn't stopped officers at the council trying to sneak charges in at times! You couldn't move round here on a match day, in fact you couldn't really go out as the chances were you'd not be able to get back near your home if you did. Working with the RFU and Richmond Council and residents and officers from both boroughs we set-up the CPZ, and it was one of the best things we ever did. I know Ivybridge still suffers from some irresponsible parking, but I do think the Police could be more active in this respect, however, overall it has been a great success. Whether people would have been prepared to pay I cannot say, after all motorists are some of the most taxed people on the planet seems to me, and there are costs involved in consultation andf traffic orders and all the other formalities which the Council would have to pay, so it would seem to be a case of the lesser of the evils.

Vanessa Smith ● 6349d

For further information on CPZ permits etc. use this link:http://www.hounslow.gov.uk/index/az_services/parking_az/parking_permits/parking_permits_further_info.htm

David Palmer ● 6351d

Thanks John, the point about evening classes was something I hadn't thought about. What about families with two or more cars, are they catered for ?  The thing is you can't please all of the people all of the time !

Pat Kingham ● 6351d

The benefit of a CPZ is that residents get exclusive use of on-street parking. The privilege comes at a cost, however. The current charge for first car in most Hounslow schemes is around £60 per year. Some residents find problems arise with visitors. The scheme allows residents to buy short term tickets for their visitors, but there is some disagreement about how much time should be provided.With TVU close by at the Paragon, the key question is the times that the CPZ operates. Around TVU's St Marys Road, Ealing campus the scheme operates to mid-evening to prevent students attending evening classes parking in neighbouring streets. I must admit that I don't know whether evening classes run at the Paragon.As a guide, residents with driveways or alternative off-street parking tend to oppose CPZ's, however those without are more likely to be affected by on-street parking and tend to be supportive.I hope the option residents plump for is the one that serves most people's best interests.

John Connelly ● 6351d

We live very near to Boston Manor Park, with Glaxo Smith Kline nearby, also the new Paragon TVU bldg and Gunnersbury school.

Pat Kingham ● 6351d

Patricia, can you give me an idea of where you are and why the parking is bad? I've been wondering if that's a potential solution to the problem in the area near all the new construction (to prevent it being used as informal staff parking).

Holly Hodges ● 6351d