Residents' parking - letter to Oxford Mail

12.08.24pm BST (GMT +0100) Fri 14th Jul 2006

Cllr Brighouse (Oxford Mail July 10) asks if we are seeing a Liberal Democrat U-turn over residents' parking charges, because she claims that I supported them when I was Deputy Leader of the Council, but am now undecided.

In fact I supported consulting the people of Oxford on these charges, before the Council comes to a decision on charging. So I was and am still open minded.

The County has long had a policy of self-financing residents' parking schemes. Henley and Abingdon residents pay for administration of their schemes. Labour Councillors never objected to these charges. When schemes were originally introduced in the City, the police enforced them, the fines went to the Home Office and the City Council paid for the administration. Now the penalties charges go to the County Council, but are not sufficient to pay for the administration and the enforcement by Control Plus. The City Council has refused to continue its subsidy. The deficit is met from the surplus on Pay-&-Display, which could otherwise be used for improvements to Park-&-Ride.

So we await the views of the public. Many disapprove; some support charges - particularly if there were to be improvements in the administration. Others feel that it is unfair to give free parking in the City Centre on Sundays (at considerable cost since Control Plus still has to enforce the Free-but-Display regulations), while residents may be charged.

Yours faithfully

Cllr Dermot Roaf (former Deputy Leader of the County Council)