Leicestershire taxpayers will fund £1m parking deficit
Taxpayers have had to foot a bill of almost £1m to cover the costs of Leicestershire's parking enforcement programme.
Figures released by Leicestershire County Council show the county's current parking set-up has been running at a loss every year since it was set up in the summer of 2007.
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A warden issues a ticket to a car driver
Despite more than 140,000 fines being issued in the two-and-half years, which has generated £4,045,395.However, the service has cost almost £5m, leaving a deficit set to reach £944,700 by the end of March.
Costs include paying staff, processing tickets, and legal fees.
In Leicester, the city council has generated £10.2m from fines, car parking charges and on-street pay and display machines in the same time.
The cost of running its parking service has been almost £3.8m, leaving a surplus of around £6.4m.
County Hall manages enforcement for the seven district councils, and originally wanted parking enforcement to pay for itself.
However, the authority has always denied wardens were given targets for the number of tickets handed out.
County parking network manager Greg Payne said: "We always expected that there would be a deficit on running parking enforcement at least for a period after we took it over, but the long-term aim is to make it a cost-neutral service."
He said they would be looking at "staff costs" to make savings, but the county was still happy to pay for a service that eases congestion and keeps routes clear for emergency services.
Transport cabinet member Councillor Lesley Pendleton said: "It has never been about generating income but all about safety and stopping the massive problems that poor and inconsiderate parking causes communities."
The county council has borne £263,000 of the total deficit for on-street parking enforcement and the district councils the remaining £681,700 for ticketing in public car parks.
Charnwood Borough Council spokesman Councillor Peter Osborne said: "Our finances are challenged at the moment so ideally the cost would cover itself.
"But it is a service we offer which improves the safety and security of our car parks by having a warden presence."
Blaby District Council lead Councillor Ernie White said: "We don't make money from parking enforcement but we still do it because there is a need to make sure our car parks are well managed."
Motorist Paul Fletcher, 33, from Loughborough, was amazed at the losses.
He said: "The wardens are always around slapping tickets on windscreens and you can almost here the ringing of the cash registers as they walk down the street."
Councillor Patrick Kitterick, Leicester City Council's transport spokesman, said: "We have generated a substantial surplus over the years which has been put towards transport initiatives in the city."
6 Comments
by Sinjay, Leicester
Monday, February 08 2010, 1:29PM
“I think that traffic wardens do a marvellous job. They help the flow of traffic into and out of the city, and discourage car usage. They should be applauded.”
by Andrew, Leicester
Monday, February 08 2010, 1:18PM
“Andy, Aylestone: none of the areas you mention are in the county, they are in the city where parking enforcement makes a profit.”
by Rubino, Charnwood
Monday, February 08 2010, 1:17PM
“I've watched the Traffice Enforcement Officers walk by cars parked on the pavement, on yellow lines and generally where they shouldn't be. Why? Because they were on the way to the multi story car park to look for 'easier' cars in there. I think they should concentrate on the cars causing a real issue before those dodgy to pay for parking.”
by Andy wass, aylestone
Monday, February 08 2010, 12:46PM
“you see cars all the time parking elegal in aylestone they park on pavements so not on yellow lines seen police about it they say we no but do nothing gwendolen rd area you see a odd warden they say not on my hht so will not go down that road. then then you go down melton rd from melton turn out of the city it is free for all I have counted 29 cars in that mile at 4pm time one day where are the the wardens its like this every time I go down that road. so if the wardens went down the right roads the taxpayers would not have to foot the bill”
by Graham, Whetstone
Monday, February 08 2010, 12:08PM
“I guess there's 3 conclusions you can come to from this report:
1) the parking problem isn't so bad, or
2) parking enforcement is inefficient & doesn't present value for money for the taxpayers, or
3) not enough motorists are violating parking regulations...
Of course how any intelligent person could expect this service to be self financing is beyond me, do they think we're all outlaws?...”
by Cllr Max Hunt, Loughborough
Monday, February 08 2010, 10:35AM
“In many parts of the County staff combine the job of enforcing parking regs with reporting fly-tipping and vandalism - a duty on Districts, not County.
A fair split is needed. Councillors in rural and less troublesome areas must also recognise the cost of deploying wardens to patrol where there is less likely to tickets issued.
But no ticket targets either please!”