Agenda item

(a)       Verbal update on the progress of the Town Centre East Residents’ Parking Zone.

(b)       Petition regarding parking in the Dunkirk area of Newcastle town centre.

(c)        Funding of Residents’ Parking Zones.

(a)       A verbal update was provided on progress in relation to the Town Centre East Residents’ Parking Zone.

            Letters would shortly be sent to residents providing a general update and outlining the next steps.  A joining fee of £50 was currently proposed based on an uptake of 80 residents.  There would need to be sufficient uptake to ensure the scheme’s viability as its cost would be approximately £8,000.

(b)       A report was submitted advising the committee of the receipt of a petition from 49 residents in relation to parking issues in the Dunkirk area of Newcastle.

The petition called for a number of measures including signage, monitoring of vehicles at peak times, issuing of warning notices, enforcement action in respect of persistent parking on footpaths and at junctions, and ongoing monitoring.

Resolved:     That the content of the petition be noted and Dunkirk be reaffirmed as the next area to be considered for a residents’ parking zone.

(c)        A report was submitted in relation to the funding of residents’ parking zones.

            The introduction of civil parking enforcement had enabled the introduction of residents’ parking zones (RPZ) where appropriate and the county council was committed to progressing the introduction of one zone at a time, with the area to the south-east of the town centre currently being considered.

The process of assessing the suitability of an area for a RPZ was resource intensive and included significant amounts of consultation with the residents.  This had led to delays in investigating the introduction of RPZs, if suitable, for other areas within the borough.  In order to reduce the delays in introducing RPZs, the county council could buy in external consultants to supplement its resources, but funding for this would be needed.  Requests had been made to the county council for additional funding to support this acceleration of the program but unfortunately no suitable funding stream had been identified.

It could be possible for the borough council to sponsor the RPZ program, subject to the availability of funding.

The cost to undertake a review of an area for a RPZ was dependent on the response to the consultations with the residents and the area being considered.  A budget estimate of between £15,000 and £20,000 would not be unreasonable; this would not include any of the Traffic Regulation Order advertisement costs or the cost of any site works (signing, lining, possible kerbing works, etc).

As the county council was not able to provide funding to accelerate the program, the committee was asked to determine whether it wished to request the Cabinet to consider funding this proposal.

A successful scheme would deter indiscriminate parking, leading to the potential for increased use of the borough’s car parks and the associated increase in income.

Resolved:

(1)               That, as part of the co-operative agenda, the Cabinet be requested to consider the making of a financial contribution to increase the rate of introduction of residents’ parking schemes; and

(2)               Further discussions be entered into with the county council on this matter in pursuance of the co-operative council initiative.