Reading Conservatives have expressed their shock at the impact of leaked Labour plans to increase massively the cost of parking in a residents’ parking zone. The Council is currently conducting a review of all residents’ parking areas but information has been passed to the Conservatives which shows that Labour are planning to stop the right to a free resident’s parking permit for many households and nearly double the cost of a second permit. Many addresses will therefore lose their entitlement to a first or second permit.

At present the first permit is free and a second permit costs £55, up to 20 visitors permits are issued free and subsequent books are charged at £12 per book. Under Labour’s plans for anyone moving into a residents’ parking zone, the second permit would rise to £100 and just 10 visitors permits would be issued free, with subsequent books being charged at £20 per book.

However, the biggest blow for residents will be the news that any address that has any off-street parking (whether at the property or elsewhere) will not be entitled to a free first permit. The homeowner will have to apply for a second permit at £100, and this will only be issued if the parking zone they are in is less than 80% subscribed. With the planned merger of over-subscribed zones with the under-subscribed ones, it is unlikely that any zones will meet these tighter criteria for issuing second permits.
Commercial vehicles will not be entitled to a resident’s permit and will have to apply for a business permit at £250. They will be restricted to one permit per business.

Discretionary permits applications will cost £50 per application with the actual permit costing £300 (the application cost would be deducted from the £300).

All residents’ parking zones (except the centre zones) will be changed to allow 2 hour parking between 10am and 4pm.
The Labour Group also wants to introduce higher charges for vehicles that are considered to be “gas guzzlers”. So older and larger vehicles would almost certainly pay even higher charges!

Conservatives have pledged to stop these Labour plans for residential and visitors permits if elected and restrict any increase in charges to the rate of inflation. The deficit in funding the scheme would be met by introducing pay and display bays for non-residents between 10am and 4pm.

Conservative Transport Spokesman Cllr Richard Willis said, “This will be shocking news to the many residents who live in residents’ parking zones. Many addresses will lose their right to a free permit completely and other residents will have to pay £100 for the privilege of parking outside their own property. Plans for even higher charges for older vehicles would also hit poorer families hardest.
Labour was hoping to keep this secret until after the local elections and then spring the news on local residents. Conservatives will stop these outrageous plans and ensure that addresses that are currently entitled to a free permit will continue to do so.”

28th April 2010