Residents Parking Sheme - Need for consultation


Tonight's Evening Telegraph covers reaction to the council's proposals for a residents parking scheme in the West End and elsewhere. Click on the photograph to read the story.
Today I called for the consultation on residents parking charges to be as full as possible. The City Council approved further consultation on parking charges in the West End and other parts of the city which border the city centre on Monday night.

I have met with the officers concerned with this policy in the City Development Department and I am satisfied that they intend to make this as full a consultation as possible. There is clearly a problem with parking particularly during the day in parts of the West End as some people park in residential areas and then go to work at the University or even in the city centre.

The consultation must focus on whether the proposals will effectively solve the problems caused by inconsiderate parking and whether the solutions will have any other consequences. At the City Council meeting on Monday evening I raised my concerns that the report we were given indicated that local people were not prepared to pay £77 a year for a parking space. Local people need to balance whether they think that the problems will be solved by the parking scheme against the cost of the scheme. It is also important to note that at the present time people in Menzieshill pay only £5 a year for a parking permit.

I will be watching to ensure that the consultation is as full as possible and I encourage local people to make sure that their views are heard loud and clear during the forthcoming consultation process.