Growing Concerns That Parking Charges Will Be Introduced
as Government minister gives the clearest indication yet
In a letter sent to a group of objectors, Parks Minister Margaret Hodge appears to clear the way for an imminent announcement that the charging plan will be approved.
As well as paving the way for their introduction the minister's letter also indicates the likely level of charges - 50p an hour.
And she also dismisses the widely held concerns that the charges will discourage people from visiting the park or that motorists will clog up neighbouring residential streets with parked cars in a bid to avoid paying.
Her letter states:
"I do not accept your assertion that the level of charge will deter people from visiting. It may have an effect of encouraging visitors to use modes of transport other than the car, which has to be good for the park.
"There is no evidence that a charge will lead to significant displacement parking in the roads outside the parks, but if a charge were introduced the (Royal Parks) agency has said it will review the impact within 18 months of implementation.
"I should also add that the proposed charge of 50p an hour to a maximum of £2 is not excessive and Bushy and Richmond parks are the only Royal Parks with parking provision that do not charge."
Wandsworth Council leader Edward Lister, who joined the leaders of Richmond and Kingston Councils at a recent meeting with Mrs Hodge to lobby against the charges, said:
"It seems quite clear now that the Government is on the verge of giving these proposals the green light. Unfortunately Mrs Hodge seems quite determined to ride roughshod over public opinion and has no qualms about ignoring the results of the Royal Parks Agency's own consultation exercise.
"When the agency asked people what they thought about these charges, a massive 84 per cent rejected the idea. For the minister to ignore such overwhelming public opposition would be quite extraordinary.
"What Mrs Hodge doesn’t seem to recognise is that most visitors to the park have no choice about taking the car because the public transport options are virtually non-existent. All of which makes the move to impose car park charges indefensible. The minister seems unconcerned about the effect charges will have on adjoining residential areas like Roehampton, which will suffer overspill parking as drivers seek to avoid the charge.
"The charges will also be particularly unfair on older residents, parents with very young children and others with limited incomes. That is why these proposals should be abandoned."
Over the course of its 13 week consultation earlier this year, the RPA received 2,000 individual responses. It also received five petitions, containing approximately 13,000 signatures from those opposed to the charges, while two similar petitions placed on the Downing Street website attracted a total of 5,759 names
Residents living in the west of the borough also received a pre-printed postcard in April's edition of the council's newspaper BrightSide, giving them the chance to have their say on the proposals. More than 2,500 of these were filled in and forwarded to the agency.
| In total 84 per cent of those who took part in the consultation were against the proposals. Among the individual comments submitted to the RPA were: - "The park is a beautiful facility for young children and I feel that making access more expensive would disproportionately discourage this group." - "The Royal Parks should be encouraging, not discouraging, people to make use of the park - it is a marvelous resource that should be free to all." - “I, and others like me, will simply stop going [to the park] as public transport is difficult and paying for parking irksome." - "In the view of poor public transport links…I think that imposing parking charges would reduce the ability to visit the park regularly by many sectors of the community." - "With three children under the age of eight, I cannot envisage getting a bus with scooters, balls and picnic paraphernalia etc and the children." - "As a resident who lives very close to an entrance to the park, I am extremely concerned about the number of extra cars that will inevitably be parked." - "Human nature will encourage people to park, at no charge, outside the gates, where there are no restrictions or resident permit zones." - "Introducing parking charges will change the whole ethos of (the parks) where people go to relax and unwind. It is practically impossible to know how long one will be in one of the parks." |
December 23, 2009