Drivers caught out by pub parking fines

Staffordshire Newsletter
by Matt Davies

CONTROVERSIAL parking fines at a Walton pub have sparked fury amid claims that more than 30 people were caught in one day as a security van lay in wait.
Restrictions were introduced at the Lamb Inn, on Eccleshall Road, last Thursday by the pub’s owners Enterprise Inns.
Furious residents contacted the Newsletter complaining that signs on the car park were small and hidden in a bid to catch as many people as possible.
A second resident, who did not wish to be named, said that a van belonging to the company managing the car park, Central Ticketing, had been stationed just outside the boundary. As soon as drivers had parked and left the site, security staff issued tickets on the vehicles.
Angry resident Bob Jones, of St Vincent Road, said: "I’ve been told that 35 tickets were issued on the first day. I was caught myself.
"I just went round the corner to the chip shop and corner shop. People only park there for five minutes and then go, it has been going on for years. The signs are so small, it is almost impossible to notice them.
"If there had been proper signage then it would have been OK I think what they are doing is disgusting."
The 52-year-old said he had been fined £60 but the fee would increase to £85 after 14 days. if not paid.
Landlady Pauline Groucott said the pub’s owners Enterprise Inns had introduced the fines. She declined to make further comment.
A spokeswoman for Enterprise Inns said: "While this an Enterprise pub, this business is run by the licensee and it is their responsibility to make any decision about car parking facilities.
"We are aware that there have been some issues regarding improper use of the car park, which has resulted in new car parking restrictions being introduced."

Parking Tickets Fiasco

News & Star
30/11/06
Exclusive: by Phil Coleman
Carlisle City Council has been accused of issuing five years worth of invalid parking tickets after officials wrote off a single mum's parking debts of around £3,500....more

Fined driver takes on council and wins

Havant and West Sussex News
29th November 06

A MOTORIST took on a council over a parking fine – and won.
Stephen Taylor was fined £30 after his ticket slipped down the dashboard of his car.
Determined not to pay up, he took Havant Borough Council to the National Parking Adjudication Service.
And the motorist is today celebrating after the panel found in his favour.
It ruled that Mr Taylor, from Chichester, proved he had bought a ticket when he was fined in Emsworth in June.
He said: 'I appealed because I just thought they were being really petty.
'I have never failed to pay in more than 10 years of parking here.'
During the hearing the panel also found that thousands of parking fines handed out by Havant Borough Council were invalid.
Fines issued failed to include two dates – when the offence took place and when the fine was issued.
After a High Court ruling in August both dates must appear on the fine so the motorist – who has 28 days to appeal – knows how much time they have to challenge it.
Immediately after the ruling Havant council changed its parking fines.
Even though the authority had previously been handing out thousands of illegal tickets, it will not have to repay the fines.
Once a fine has been paid an individual motorist loses their right to appeal.
Gerry Facenna, a barrister who works for Monkton Chambers, said: 'Any tickets which failed to have two dates on them even before the High Court ruling are still considered invalid.
'In terms of challenging it, people have a very limited time, 28 days I think.
'Those who have already paid are unlikely to be able to claim it back.'
Havant council said it had changed its parking fines on the day of the High Court ruling.
Council leader David Gillett didn't want to comment on the issue, but a council spokeswoman said: 'The public can be advised that action against drivers who park in a thoughtless, dangerous or improper manner will be tackled by the council.'

Reporter evades triple parking ticket fine by exploiting legal loophole

Holdthefrontpage
By HoldtheFrontPage staff

A reporter from the Barking and Dagenham Recorder has won a legal battle with a local council to get £240 of parking fines quashed, after she exploited a legal loophole.
Chloe Mayer, (26), had three parking tickets cancelled following a seven-month fight with Redbridge Council parking chiefs.
The reporter was hit with two fines earlier this year after returning late to her car which was parked at a car park near to the paper's Ilford offices.
She claims she received a third penalty even though a valid ticket was displayed on her car.
But with the help of her colleague, Ilford Recorder reporter Marc Walker - who successfully got a parking fine cancelled on a technicality while training in Harlow last year - Chloe decided to appeal against all three.
She argued that under British law, no one can be financially penalised outside of court and despite the Road Traffic Act 1991 – under which local authorities hand out parking fines – the earlier principle holds true.
She also argued the notice did not conform to the Road Traffic Act, because it did not properly display the date of the offence.
The council cancelled two fines in August, but refused to back down over the third, despite Chloe appealing against all three on the same grounds.
With the help of the "metric martyrs defence fund" – which fights against council parking enforcement among other antibureaucracy campaigns – Chloe continued her appeal against the third penalty.
She had been due to attend a hearing before the Parking and Traffic Appeals Service, but this has now been called off and the third ticket cancelled.
Redbridge Council said this was because the penalty notice in question did not conform to the Road Traffic Act.
Chloe said: "I'm happy to pay to use council car parks, but to be fined more than £200 just for being a few minutes late is outrageous."

Bid to enforce parking rights of disabled motorists reaches Holyrood

The Scotsman

PROPOSALS aimed at tackling the abuse of disabled parking bays will be officially lodged at Holyrood today.
If passed by the Scottish Parliament, the Disabled Persons Parking (Scotland) Bill would make all disabled persons' parking bays enforceable.

At present, most disabled parking bays are courtesy only, so anyone can park in them without the risk of being penalised.
The member's bill, drawn up by Labour MSP Jackie Baillie, would cover all disabled parking bays - whether in town centres, supermarket car parks or residential areas.
It has already received broad support from a steering group made up of experts in disability rights, equal opportunities and local government.
Speaking ahead of the launch of a consultation paper , Ms Baillie said: "Abuse of disabled persons' parking has to be tackled.
"Put simply, but powerfully, one disabled person said to me, 'If you want my bay, have my disability, too'.
"We need to send out the message that abusing disabled persons' parking is unacceptable."

Police dish out 50 parking fines in four weeks

Worksop Today

MORE than 50 fines have been issued to drivers parking illegally in Worksop town centre over the last four weeks.
Town centre beat managers have cracked down on illegal parking, with tickets being issued in hot spots such as Bridge Street and Ryton Street.
PC Matt McNelis and PC Rachel Moakes, the two town centre beat managers, carried out the clampdown on the situation, which has been causing concern for both the police and the public.
Tickets have also been issued on Bridge Place, Market Place and Newcastle Avenue.
"It is illegal to park on double yellow lines at any time of day and on single yellow lines between 8am and 6pm," said PC Matt McNelis."We will not tolerate people that disregard these parking regulations and fines will be issued."
As part of their town centre campaign, Notts police have issued a reminder for motorists and cyclists who drive and ride around Worksop.
There are three rules in particular that they would like to draw the public's attention to.
"Firstly, on Bridge Place the KEEP CLEAR box means exactly that. It prohibits all vehicles, including those with disabled badges or other parking permits," said a spokesman."Secondly, Bridge Street is a pedestrianised area with exemption only for those with a green special access permit. Loading and unloading and disabled parking is forbidden between 10am and 3.30pm."
"Thirdly, police would like to remind town centre users that there is no cycling permitted on Bridge Street at any time."
This latest push to cut illegal parking has resulted in an average of more than 10 fines per week – and the beat managers intend to continue tackling the problem as long as it persists.
They are also appealing to the public to park in the designated parking bays and car parks, especially as the shopping area is expected to become busier in the run up to Christmas.
"Both the police and Bassetlaw Council are happy to discuss parking issues with members of the public," said PC Matt McNelis."Particularly in the run up to Christmas as the town centre gets busier with shoppers, we would appreciate the co-operation of all motorists."
"Please use car parks and designated disabled parking bays rather than parking on Bridge Street."
"This will make the town centre safer for everybody."

The Secret Parking Attendant

The Secret Parking Attendant

We all remember the Secret Policeman, and more recently, Nina Hobson on Dispatchers.
All the hype, the papers going mad at all this and the abuse the police recieved, for, well, bugger all in the Dispatchers thing.
Well, what about this?
Parking attendants being blatently racist to peoples faces as well as out of the public eye.
Calling certain areas racist names (which I wont say on here)
Talking about giving tickets to people they dont like etc.
Now where is all the media hype over this?
Well?
Ah well, at least they will get a diversity course (put off my post about door staff until later now due to my huge outrage at this lack of diversity training that the parking attendants recieved)

Nightclub staff to dodge parking fines

Evening Telegraph
20 November 06
Staff at a Dundee nightclub who got tickets for parking in a supermarket car park may be able to escape the fines because a legal oversight (writes Bryan Kaye).
The loophole emerged as management at Fat Sams sought legal advice after employees incurred £40 penalties for leaving their cars at Lidl during late-night working hours when the store is closed.
Lawyers attempted to contact the firm issuing the tickets — only to find the firm named on the penalty notices — Total Parking Solutions Ltd — is not responsible for the car park.
Angus Robb, Fat Sams’ director, said it appeared his staff could now rip up their tickets.
He said his lawyers had told him Total Parking Solutions said their correspondence had been directed to the wrong company.
The firm said this might relate to another company called Total Parking Solutions UK Ltd, which had changed its name to TPS Parking Solutions Ltd.
The lawyers said this appeared to be a complete defence to the parking charge notices.
Total Parking Solutions Ltd director Paul Williams said his firm had nothing to do with Lidl or the tickets issued to Fat Sams’ staff.
“In April of this year we discovered a newly registered company called Total Parking Solutions UK Ltd and considered that this name was too similar to ours,” he said.
“As such, we objected to this name and in May they changed their name to TPS Parking Solutions Ltd.”
A TPS Parking Solutions Ltd spokesman admitted the company had been forced to change its name. He claimed they were also still known by their previous name, as it appeared on the tickets.
Asked how this could be possible, he said he would have to seek a senior staff member.
Just over a week ago, Lidl agreed to waive some 40 tickets issued to Fat Sams’ staff as a goodwill gesture, but warned future breaches would incur penalties.
Lidl cited problems with litter and the need to ensure ample spaces for supermarket customers in the morning as reasons for taking strict action to deter overnight use.
A surveillance camera was installed recently to monitor overnight parking activity.

DRIVER GETS TICKET ASS HE TRIES TO SAVE DYING WIFE

Mirror
By Robert Stansfield
A DRIVER who pulled over when his wife had a fatal heart attack was booked by traffic wardens.
The distraught pensioner was forced to stop on double yellow lines outside a doctors' surgery to call 999.
He went with his dying wife, who has not been named, in the ambulance but returned to his car to find a £50 ticket.
Gary Mulreay, who runs a nearby barbers, said: "I was there to help get this poor woman out of the car and administer CPR to her. The doctors were very good and put a note in the window explaining it was a medical emergency. And when the wardens came we told them what had happened.
"But one of the wardens just ignored us and issued a ticket anyway. He said that the driver should have moved the car before going to hospital.
"I was absolutely stunned. The warden showed a total disregard for human life. He had absolutely no compassion. He actually said, 'It's not my problem, I've got a job to do'."
The elderly woman had a heart attack on the way to a doctor's appointment. Ambulance crews were at the scene outside St John's Wood Medical Practice, North London, six minutes after the call last Thursday.
But the woman was dead on arrival at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington.
A doctor at the surgery said: "We left a note in the car window to tell them what had happened - and the distressed husband still got a ticket. The whole episode beggars belief."
A spokesman for Westminster Council, which employs the NCP wardens, said: "Notes can be left on cars for a variety of reasons, and experience has shown that not all such notes are as they seem.
"Applying a consistent approach to enforcement protects parking attendants from potentially confrontational situations. However, in consideration of the information provided, this parking ticket has been cancelled."
b.stansfield@mirror.co.uk]

Parking ticket protest verdict

The Newcastle Journal
Nov 17 2006
By Nick Meakin,
The Journal





Parking ticket outlaw Neil Herron has won just two of his 26 appeals against fines, it was revealed yesterday.



The Metric Martyr has spent two years deliberately flouting parking restrictions in Sunderland in a bid to prove the flaws he believes are in the city's parking system.
His appeals against 26 tickets issued under Sunderland Council's parking regime were heard in October by the National Parking Adjudication Service.
And adjudicator Andrew Keenan has upheld all but two of the fines, for tickets issued outside his offices in Frederick Street.

Sunderland Council yesterday said the ruling meant the overall integrity of its parking scheme had been upheld.
But last night Mr Herron said that since the hearing, he has continued his campaign and has deliberately collected a ticket every day on Fredrick Street despite the hearing outcome.
At the appeal hearing in October Mr Herron highlighted a series of flaws he claims could bring down the entire parking regime in the city centre.
On Frederick Street West, the council admitted it had two separate traffic orders in place - one imposing `no waiting' restrictions, while the other made provision for parking bays.
Mr Herron claims flaws in the system make the whole controlled parking zone, which sets out waiting restrictions in the city centre, invalid.
A number of parking fines have already been repaid by the city council, and changes made to the orders.
But in his report Mr Keenan ruled there were no fundamental errors in the city's parking regime nor had motorists been misled.
But Mr Herron said yesterday: "I do not accept the findings of the hearing.
"The fact that two of my appeals in Frederick Street were upheld proves that the system is incorrect.
"There is a fundamental flaw in Sunderland's parking system.
"There is nothing in the city that is legally signed. As a result all parking tickets are invalid."
A Sunderland City council spokesman said: "The decision means that the overall integrity of the scheme has been upheld.
"The vast majority of motorists use the city's parking facilities responsibly, observing the lines and signs, which aim to ensure efficient and safe use of the city's roads and car parks.
"We hope that in the light of this adjudication everyone will continue to do so."

Fined drivers unable to contact firm

Surrey Online
November 16 2006

FUMING drivers handed hefty fines for staying too long at a garage cafe are finding it difficult to pay off their tickets. Full story

Parking fine 'loophole' is exposed by motorist

A motorist has exposed a legal loophole which might invalidate thousands of parking tickets issued in Dacorum.
Hemel today
Wednesday, November 15:

Adjudicators wiped Thomas Palmer's £60 penalty charge because the wording on the ticket failed to comply with the Road Traffic Act.
Mr Palmer was given the ticket in June when his car was parked on the pavement on Hillfield Road. According to the parking attendant, the double yellow lines on the road applied to the pavement as well.
But the ticket was missing vital wording to state when it was issued.
Mr Palmer said: "I appealed on a technicality."
The adjudicator deemed the ticket 'unenforceable' and ordered Dacorum Council to cancel the charge. National campaigners claim there may be thousands of unpaid parking charges in Dacorum which could also be invalid.
Parking protester Neil Herron said: "Every penalty charge notice (parking ticket) must contain certain legal wording according to the 1991 Road Traffic Act.
"The ticket must have the date of contravention plus the date of issue. Both pieces of information are required for it to be valid, yet Dacorum Borough Council has been issuing tickets with only one date on them."
The National Parking Adjudication Service (NPAS) said: "Motorists have up to 28 days to pay their fine from the date of the ticket issue, not the date of the offence, which is why it is set in law that the tickets must contain both dates."
This will not mean that motorists who have already paid their parking fines will have a case.
The NPAS spokesman said: "As things stand you cannot appeal retrospectively so if you have paid your ticket already you can't appeal through the council or through us."
A spokesman for Dacorum Council added: "There can be no comeback for anyone who has received a penalty charge notice and paid the fine. Paying the fine is taken as an acceptance of guilt."
Since Mr Palmer's charge was dropped on November 6, Dacorum Borough Council has been seeking legal advice on whether its tickets need to be changed.
A spokesman said: "In the meantime we will continue with parking enforcement in town centres and streets."
Mr Herron said: "Local authorities are not above the law.
"It may only be wording the council has got wrong, but motorists who were 'nearly' parked in the right spot do not get out of getting a ticket. The law is a two way street."
More information on parking fines is available at http://neilherron. blogspot.com

Disabled man wins parking ticket battle

This is Lancashire
By Amanda Smith

A DISABLED man who parked in a suspended bay has had his fine waived following a six-month battle with Bolton Council.
Steve Elster, aged 55, parked his car in a disabled space at Victoria Square, outside the Town Hall, on Sunday, May 21.
The bay was not in use on that day because it was Civic Sunday - an annual parade for the new mayor.
All the bays were suspended but Mr Elster claims the signage at the disabled spaces was inadequate.
When he returned to his vehicle he had a £30 parking ticket on his windscreen.
Mr Elster said he relies on his blue badge when parking in Bolton after a fall down stairs four years ago resulted in him struggling to walk more than 30 yards.
He complained to the council about the parking ticket but it has taken six months for him to get an answer.
He said: "I didn't see the sign at the disabled space until I got back. It was only small and there were other cars parked in the area.
"There were more cones and signs at the able-bodied spaces, which made it obvious you couldn't park there, but this was not the case with the disabled spaces.
"I wrote to the council three times and included photographs I had taken on my phone.
"Two months ago I rang the council and they said the legal department was looking into it. A month ago they said the same thing, so I contacted the local government ombudsman."
Two weeks later, Mr Elster received a letter from the council apologising for the mistake and told him the ticket had been waived.
Sheila Jackson, the council's parking manager, said in a letter: "Unfortunately, for such an event our supply of cones and suspension pods are limited and therefore placed in the most appropriate places.
"From the photographs I can see that the suspension sign was set back from the bays and not sufficient to give a clear indication that the bays were suspended.
"Therefore, on this occasion the notice will be waived and no further action taken. We apologise for any inconvenience caused and there was no intention to discriminate against disabled badge holders."

Doctor makes a stand against parking fines

Sunderland Echo

A doctor today said she would fight hospital bosses through the courts over a string of parking fines.
Dr Cara Jennings is embroiled in a battle with trust chiefs after being ticketed at Sunderland Royal Hospital.
The junior doctor now faces going to court after deciding to make a stand and refusing to pay her fines.
Dr Jennings, who worked at the Royal until August, forked out £12-a-month for a parking permit, but often said she couldn't find a space.
She said: "There are only 50 parking spaces for regular staff, so the chances of getting a parking space, particularly if you are coming in late, is like winning the lottery.
"If you are charging 600 staff for a parking permit, but only provide 50 spaces, you have no chance.
"I had to park on double yellow lines, cross hatched areas and grass verges – anywhere where I could park safely and not cause an obstruction and get into work. What I am supposed to do, drive around the hospital for hours?
"The trust say it's all about putting patients first, but it's all about charging them money. Without doctors, nurses and staff, there is no point patients being there."
Over the course of a year, the 26-year-old, was given four £20 parking tickets. Now working at Gateshead's Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Dr Jennings said: "After coming off a shift in A&E in Sunderland to see a ticket on your car made me feel totally devalued.
"The NHS works on goodwill. We all work above and beyond the call of duty, nobody quibbles that extra hour. To do that and get a parking ticket for your trouble makes you think: 'Why do I bother?'"
She is now being chased by a credit referral company for repayments.
Dr Jennings said: "They have sent me endless letters. It's disgusting and quite intimidating, but I am not prepared to be bullied. If they want to go to court, it's fine by me. "
A spokesman for City Hospitals Sunderland NHS Trust said : "Parking and congestion is a problem everywhere, for everyone, and although the trust is providing more spaces on site than ever before, with more constantly coming on stream as old buildings are demolished, it is unfortunately not possible to keep pace with the overall increase in traffic.
"The system in operation at the Royal – like most other hospitals – is a question of first-come-first-served, with priority for patients.
"With about 5,000 staff on a city-centre site it is regrettably not possible to provide parking spaces for each individual at the time of their choosing. The trust encourages travel flexibility, car sharing and other alternatives to car use and offers generous discounts on the Metro system."

Council seizes lorry of 'prolific parking ticket evader'

24DASH.COM
Publisher: Ian Morgan
Published 10/11/2006

Camden Council has seized a lorry belonging to the borough's most prolific parking ticket evader – owing £59,100 in unpaid fines.
The green Iveco heavy goods lorry with registration number G375NKK had run up 384 Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) for breaking parking regulations.
However, officers caught up with and removed the vehicle on November 1in Queen's Crescent (NW5).
It will be sold at auction as a contribution towards the money owed to the council.
The vehicle had been fraudulently registered to a man living in NW6 – along with a further two vehicles.
Councillor Mike Greene, Executive Member for Environment, said: "Camden Council is working hard to get these dangerous vehicles off the streets, as in many cases they have a connection to other crimes including driving without insurance or road tax and displaying fake or stolen blue badges. We will be tough on the minority of worst offenders who think they are above the rules to recover the unpaid fines."
The council is also searching for these vehicles: one, registration number R505 ODC is a yellow Iveco heavy goods vehicle and the other, registration number M354 GVK is a yellow and red Iveco heavy goods vehicle.
Camden Council continues to search for the worst parking offenders, in particular seeking to track down the 'top 10' parking fine evaders.
The council has been using new technology, such as parking attendants' handheld computers, to help successfully track down more persistent evaders.
Any members of the public who see the vehicles can report them to council staff on 020 7974 4615.

MOURNERS GIVEN PARKING FINES

Dearne Today
by Lee Peace

A GRIEVING family returned from paying their last respects at a relative's funeral to find a council warden had slapped parking fines on their cars.
Relations had parked outside the former home of Margaret Scothorne in Swinton before walking behind the hearse to St Margaret's Parish Church.
After a moving funeral service, family members and friends returned to her house on Temperance Street to travel to the wake in Mexborough - only to discover a warden had placed £60 parking tickets on their car windscreens.
The mourners admit unwittingly parking on a single yellow line, but claim that the restrictions were poorly signposted and say they were upset by the timing of the fines, just a week after Mrs Scothorne passed away.
Mrs Scothorne's brother-in-law David Gardner, 66, said: "We found this quite upsetting. We had already gone through a lot with her death and to find our cars had been ticketed was quite disheartening especially when we had just been to her funeral.
"We did not see the yellow line on the road and only realised when we received the parking tickets. I cannot shout 'jobsworth' at the council official because they were only doing their job.
"But there weren't any signposts saying you couldn't park there. You don't really think about these things when you are dealing with a funeral."
He said that, had the road been better signposted, they would have noticed and parked elsewhere.
David, of St John's Walk, Royston, added: "There were about five or six of us who were fined. I have paid the money but I am going to put an appeal in to make the point because it was upsetting for the people who were there, I mean dealing with a funeral is hard enough."
A spokesman for Rotherham Council said that there is a sign post on the road which states it is a no parking zone between 9am and 6pm Monday to Saturday, and added: "We do understand that this is a sensitive issue because this was a funeral, and we do make allowances for a hearse and the funeral cortege on the road - but unfortunately we cannot do this for all of the mourners' vehicles.
"There were also other roads within the area that could have been used to park on."
lee.peace@dearnetoday.co.uk
09 November 2006

Pray and display: Council bans 'discriminatory' free Church car park

This is London

The Mayflower House council car park in Plymouth which has scrapped its free Sunday morning service


Penny-pinching council chiefs have been slammed for scrapping free Sunday morning parking for church-goers - because it discriminates against other religions.
Every week around 1,000 people take advantage of free car parking in Plymouth city centre to use one of two main Christian churches.
The council has allowed free parking until noon since parking charges on Sundays were first introduced in 1998 - so congregations can park for free and walk to church.
But the authority was now scrapped the exception and imposed a 70p per hour charge on Sunday mornings.
Church goer Mary Hooker wrote a letter of protest to be told worshippers couldn't have an exemption because it might 'discriminate' against Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, and Buddhist residents.
Most church-goers need to use the car-parks for at least two hours - costing £1.40.
The new fees affect up to 1,000 Christian worshippers every Sunday and will rake in an estimated £36,000 (assuming half drive) from them alone per year.
St Andrew's regular Mary, 66, slammed the charge as a 'tax on prayer'.
She stormed: "I have been worshipping here for fifty years - and neither I nor my parents have ever paid to park.
"I think it is disgusting. Loose change which people sued to put in the collection plate is now being fed into pay and display machines.
"It is very unforgiving. It seems the so-called politically correct reasons for this new charge are just a cover for the council to make even more money.
"They have effectively introduced a tax on going to church, and at a time when we are desperately trying to increase dwindling congregations I fear this is only going to put people off."
Mary wrote to Plymouth City Council to complain when the charge was introduced on November 3 after a review by the overview and scrutiny panel.
She asked for the exemption until noon to remain.
Parking manager Sarah Joy replied: "The basis of your representation was rejected on the grounds that the current free parking on a Sunday morning is discriminatory to other faiths and religious praying days. Dispensation is not given to other religions."
Sunday parking charges were first introduced to Plymouth in 1998, but an exemption was granted as a way of acknowledging the contribution of the Church to city life.
Worshippers who regularly attend the city centre Anglican St Andrew's Church and Plymouth Methodist Central Hall have always relied on the Guildhall and Mayflower House Court car park's free service.
But the service was also used by Sunday shoppers and other people - a loophole which is thought to have annoyed the council.
Reverend Nick McKinnel (CRT), rector of St Andrew's Church, said: "For them now to use other faiths as a way of withdrawing this concession seems pretty shabby.
"We were always granted free parking until noon, after the morning service finished.
"The reasoning behind this new charge betrays a total lack of understanding of the multi-faith agenda and serves only to divide communities.
"It does seem extraordinary to invoke other faiths as a reason to charge those who go to church.
"Everyone wants this to be a good city for those of all faiths and none.
"But the sort of spurious reasoning given on behalf of the city council betrays a total lack of understanding of the multi-faith agenda.
"Religious discrimination laws only apply in an employment context, and not to the provision of a service like a car park.
"If the council is imposing new charges because it wants more money then why not admit that?"
Reverend Paul Smith, from Plymouth Methodist Church Hall, said: "I have written to the local authority about this and I have had a reply.
"They excuse themselves on the PC ticket, saying they don't excuse Muslims on Fridays so excusing Christians on Sundays is unfair."
In his letter to Chris Sane, the council's transportation infrastructure and engineering manager, Rev Smith wrote: "I wish to express the deep concern of the congregation.. at the charge for parking on Sundays when hitherto no charges have been made.
"As you will appreciate this mitigates against those who wish to worship in city centre churches. The imposition of charges will simply impose another obstacle which makes their attendance at worship more difficult.
"Could I ask you to reconsider and bear in mind the very significant impact which they will have on churches in the heart of the city."
The 2001 census shows that the combined total of Muslims, Sikhs, Jews, Hindus and Buddhists amounted to 1.3 per cent of city residents - while 73.5 per cent of the 240,000 population described themselves as Christian.
There is one Mosque in the city which has for the last 16 years been run from a terraced house and serves all of the 883-strong Muslim population.
Plymouth also has one Buddhist centre, serving 470 people, and one Synagogue for the 182 practising Jews in the community.
There are 150 christian churches in the city - including Anglican and Methodist.
Sunday morning charges are part of a sweeping change to Plymouth's parking costs the council claim is part of an effort to 'maintain the balance' between the cost of short-stay parking and bus travel.
Hourly rates for parking from Monday to Saturday have risen and evening charges for on-street parking in the city centre has been introduced - giving the authority an annual cash boost of £782,000 per year.
Sunday charges have also been brought into line with the rest of the week as well as being introduced in the mornings for the first time - a move set to net the council an extra £365,000 a year.
The city council already has a reputation for overzealous parking fines and last year the Barbican area was listed as one of the country's top ten ticket hotspots - generating more than £43,000.
This was on top of the average £3 million a year that the council collects from parking tickets every year.
Last Christmas council bosses were branded scrooges when they started charging people to use car parks during late night shopping hours for the first time.
People protesting the Sunday morning charges, which start at 8am, have been told they can apply to the High Court if they wish to challenge the validity of the council's actions.

The Letters Page (Sunderland Echo)

Sunderland Echo
Friday, October 13, 2006
Ethnic Anglos
Let me say first of all that I do not wish to be associated in any way with racial comments alleged to have been made by NCP parking attendants in Sunderland.
I do, however, find it a bit rich to read that Mr Khan, a Sunderland businessman, criticises, "... the wider ignorance of the NCP parking attendants, as the majority of the ethnic community in Sunderland has a Bangladeshi background."
If Mr Khan has a look around the city in which he lives, he will see that the overwhelming ethnic community is Anglo-Saxon!
Michael Hafferty
Cuthbertson Court
Sunderland

No respect for us
After watching the BBC probe into the city's parking it simply confirms my entire neighbourhood's suspicions and experience.
The parking attendants and the council have no respect or consideration for any residents that live in the nearby areas of the Stadium of Light.
It's an absolute joke at the state of traffic on match days. Cars are parked on grass verges, on pavements, basically anywhere there is a space to fit a car. We, the residents, have to arrange our lives around the football season simply because of the lack of spaces provided by the council and the ridiculous parking system they have put into place around the surrounding areas.
A lot of residents cannot park their vehicles at either the front or rear of their own homes for two days of the week throughout the year! This means we have to plan our lives around this, and for what reason?
M Graham
Sunderland

Badly let down
After viewing the BBC programme Inside-Out, is it fair to conclude that to obtain a post as a parking attendant in Sunderland it is important that you have a vocabulary of no more than twelve words, half of which must be obscenities?
Further to that, your expensive state school education must have left you so ignorant that you know littleor nothing about anything. Armed with those high standards you are now qualified to stalk the streets of Sunderland, mocking the disabled and deriding those who are obviously superior in intellect but judged by you to be inferior because their skin is of a different colour.
To those charged with the duty of employing parking attendants, I would say that the people of Sunderland have been badly let down.
Ron Metcalfe
East Herrington
Sunderland



Friday, October 20, 2006

Parking battle
I write with regard to the BBC Inside Out programme in which my name and image was used as part of the programme.
I had nothing to do with the criticism of NCP employees, although I was shocked at some of the revelations.
About two months ago I was approached by the BBC for an interview in connection with my long-running dispute with Sunderland Parking Services which began on May 4, 2005, when I found a penalty charge notice on returning to my car after visiting The Galleries health centre.
I had displayed my invalidity card but forgotten to display the clock card showing my time of arrival. I appealed on the grounds of my age and ill health at the time but was turned down flat. Not wishing to face the possibility of paying a £60 fine I paid the discounted fine of £30 under protest and informed parking services I would carry on pressing for refund of my fine.
My chance came in February 2006 when the press published an article which said Sunderland Parking Services had been told by the National Car Adjudication Service that their penalty charge notices could be appealed against as they did not comply with traffic regulations, i.e., they did not show a date of issue. The PCN in my possession did not show this information but despite various correspondence the council would not budge.
I went to the Ombudsman about six months ago for help and I have recently been told because of a judicial decision taken in Barnet the Ombudsman has taken legal advice on how this would affect my complaint. The Ombudsman has contacted Sunderland to suggest that they reconsider their response to my complaint in the light of the judicial review findings. I am now awaiting their advice.
The BBC has aplogised to me for the shortness of my exposure and my reasons, which was due in part to editing problems. If they decide to do an expose on Sunderland Parking Services in the near future I shall be first in the queue, well after Neil Herron anyway. This gentleman has fought an almost lone battle for some years now against the bureaucracy and incompetence of Sunderland Parking Services and I wish him all the best.
Eric Brittain
St George Estate
Harraton
Washington

Our BBC report was fair and accurate
We, like your readers, have followed with interest the response to the BBC Inside Out expose of the racist and prejudiced approach demonstrated by some parking attendants working for NCP in the city.
I'm more than happy to let the programme speak for itself - and our viewers and your readers will no doubt draw their own conclusions about the behaviour and culture filmed by our undercover reporter.
However, I am keen to rebut suggestions made by NCP representatives and reported in the Echo that the programme was inaccurate, unbalanced or unfairly edited.
The programme was made with enormous care and careful judgment - following our own demanding guidelines for journalists and was rigorously examined before transmission.
Undercover reposrting allows us to expose behaviour that we would otherwise be unable to witness. I'm confident that this programme was a fair representation of the approach and techniques of some NCP staff, witnessed by our reporter and highlighted an issue of serious public concern.
Jacqui Hodgson
Editor
Factual Programmes
BBC North East and Cumbria

Hand it to police
I believe car parking enforcement should be taken over by the Sunderland Council or hand it back to the police.
The millions of pounds collected could be put to better use in the Wearside area rather than heading South to swell coffers of the NCP organisation.
The ruthless money grabbing action of the NCp have done a great dis-service to many small businesses in Sunderland. It's time for the NCP to go.
Southwick

It's a shambles
I agree wholeheartedly with Mr Herron about the complete shambles of the present "Parking Enforcement" arrangements in Sunderland.
I personally had a battle with Sunderland Council Parking Department over a dubious parking ticket. I appealed direct to the Parking Department who turned my appeal down. I was forced to take my appeal to the National Appeals procedure.
During my appeal period I continued to get letters from the head of the council's Parking Dept. threatening me with bailiffs. Despite this pressure, which I protested about, I proceeded and won my appeal conclusively.
I had considerable corrspondence with the Parking Department and the manager there did admit that National Car Parks did operate an "Argos points incentive scheme", emphasising it was not to award the number of parking tickets issued. In view of the recent BBC Inside Out programme how could anyone believe that statement?
I abhor the racist comments and the cracking of jokes about the disabled by the parking attendants contained in the programme. No doubt the blame game and looking for a scapegoat will now begin.
None of these involved is free from blame, this includes NCP management, Sunderland Council and the management at the council's parking Parking Department. I along with many others totally disagree with a private company being responsible for applying UK parking laws. It is obviously a mistake, an opt-out of responsibility by the council.
Parking enforcement should be brought back under direct council (in-house). No other solution will be acceptable to the community.
F Connolly
Stewart Street East
Seaham

We deserve better
When can the people of Sunderland expect the ruling Group within the City Council to be more accountable for the failures that have been highlighted in the city over the past weeks?
We had the embarrassment of Sunderland being highlighted in a BBC TV documentary about the behaviour and attitudes of NCP parking attendants working in our city streets.
Motorists in Sunderland have complained over the past two years about parking issues. It would appear that these complaints fell on deaf ears!!
The Queen Alexandra bridge reopened on October 12. Indeed the Leader of the Council, with other officials, appears in the local press celebrating this momentous occasion - not so much the momentous opening itself but the played down facts, namely that the work was almost £2million over budget and six months late.
As an independent City Councillor for the Doxford Ward I wholeheartedly support the demands from the Tory Group on these issues.
Sunderland is a great city but the voters deserve better from those in control.
Councillor George Blyth
Sunderland

Clear-out NCP yobs
A feral gang has taken control of the streets of Sunderland. They seem to be above the law but are cowardly when confronted about their actions.
Who are these people? Our parking attendants! What a bunch of louts they seemed.
All you seem to need to be a parking attendant in Sunderland is no common sense, a fag hanging from your mouth and bigoted attitude.
How they laughed at the racist banter! Such fun as they persecuted white van man in the small business owner!
I only hope I don't get my tyres slashed for writing this, as boasted by one of them who had been complained about before.
The shocking BBC documentary on Inside Out about parking enforcement in Sunderland left us with many questions but the most important one is this. Do we really need to be in business with these people at all?
Sunderland Council must clear these yobs off our streets. No need for an Asbo, just end the contract with NCP today.
Michael East
Woodland Drive
Sunderland

Parking fines reach over £4m

Your Local Guardian
By Guardian Reporter

A street-by-street probe into parking fines has revealed that Sutton handed out 52,111 penalty charge notices (PCN) last year worth a whopping £4,168,880.
Sutton's parking hotspot roads include Sutton High Street, where 1,204 PCNs were handed out at a value of £96,320 and Mulgrave Road, where motorists were slapped with £63,280 in fines.
Car parks also brought in a share of the total with Stone Place car park handing out 4,194 tickets worth £335,520 and Wallington Library car park clocking up tickets worth £108,880.
Andrew Davis, director of the Environmental Transport Agency, said: "The difficulty is the space these cars use is effectively real estate and it has an enormous value.
"We would say that as long as the system is fair and the information is clear to the user then the regime has to be there."
But motoring activists warn that the situation is getting out of control.
Tom Conti, co-founder of the London Motorist's Action Group, said: "There is a spirit of entrapment when it comes to parking tickets."
Barrie Segal, campaigner and founder of Appeal Now, said: "The main problem is there is not a motorist out there who believes these tickets are issued for the benefit of keeping the streets clear."
The PCNs are issued by both parking attendants and traffic enforcement cameras.
A council spokesman said: "Enforcement of traffic regulations in the borough is contracted out to NCP.
"The council aims through traffic enforcement to improve road safety, maintain and improve the flow of traffic and relieve congestion. We support and promote the use of public transport and other sustainable transport and work towards better facilities for disabled people, pedestrians and cyclists.
"We continually review all parking provisions in Sutton to ensure they are meeting current requirements. All income received from penalty charge notices is fed back into improving parking and public transport, such as new parking schemes, maintenance of car parks and subsidising public transport."
Sutton came second to last out of the 17 London boroughs listed in a survey commissioned by Channel 4.
Totals for the borough showed a reduction of £47,200 from the previous financial year.
The figures are based on the total value of tickets handed out in each street, at £80 and £100 face value.
Those receiving fines pay £40 or £50 if they return payment within 14 days.

QEH offers amnesty after parking fine fury

Kings Lynn Today

AN OUTCRY over the enforcement of parking charges at Lynn's Queen Elizabeth Hospital has seen an amnesty on fines for last week.
Staff and visitors were outraged at receiving £40 parking fines for not having a valid parking ticket or season ticket for the QEH car park. An enforcement company began working at the hospital earlier this month but the honeymoon period is over and last week it issued thousands of pounds of fines.
Now the QEH will fork out £2,000 to foot the bill for the amnesty after complaints poured in from staff and visitors.
Enforcing the parking rules and issuing fines met with a flood of criticism, including from a night nurse who was fined £40 for not having a season ticket after hers ran out at the end of September."It's ridiculous, the ticket office is open between 9.15am and 3.15pm – but I work nights so trying to renew my season ticket was a problem.
"I stayed behind almost two hours after my shift this week to get a new pass, and when I got back to my car I had a £40 ticket," she said.
But under the amnesty, announced on Friday, she will not have to pay the fine – and nor will anyone else who received a ticket up to Thursday.
Hospital chief executive Ruth May said: "Our new parking policy has been widely publicised among our own staff and the public. A number of penalty tickets have been issued appropriately this week, but it seems there has been a great deal of confusion.
"After discussing this matter with senior staff, we have agreed that fines imposed up until Thursday will be waived as a one-off gesture of goodwill. However, from Friday, any penalty tickets will be enforced in the normal way," added Mrs May.
Drivers who received a parking ticket should take it to the hospital's finance department, giving details of the car and those who have already paid the fine should submit details of when the ticket was received and the fine paid.
Money from parking fines goes to the private enforcement company, but the hospital hopes motorists will be deterred from not buying a ticket so the income from the ticket machines, which does go to the QEH, will increase.

Another fine mess for parking bosses

This is Lancashire
By Samrana Hussain

A CAR-PARK company has altered its parking tickets after they were deemed invalid in a test court case.
The change comes five months after we highlighted that Lancashire County Council's Parkwise tickets could be contested as they did not contain the date of the offence or issue.
The county council confirmed that tickets issued after October 9 display both dates separately after the London court judgement.

A spokesman said: "The redesign of this ticket was made around the latest judgement to bring the tickets in line with guidelines."
Despite the court's decision, the county council refused to accept tickets issued before October 9 were invalid.
National parking protester Neil Herron, who runs the People's No' campaign, urged drivers with Parkwise tickets issued before October 9 to challenge their fines as they were issued without separate contravention and issue dates.
He said: "This shows an absolute arrogance when caught out with non-compliant tickets. Parkwise will still not accept they were wrong.
"Why would they change the tickets if they weren't wrong?
"I believe Parkwise have continued to issue tickets which are illegal and have therefore been obtaining money by deception."
The potential loophole only applies to people who have yet to pay fines, as to pay is to accept the ticket's wording.
A Parkwise spokesperson said: "We believe our Penalty Charge Notices are correct and enforceable and have not been found to be at fault by NPAS (National Parking Adjudication Service) in the past.
"Our intention is to appeal against this judgement."
County Councillor Shelagh Derwent said: "If the tickets were illegal, people should be let off the payment and the people who have already paid should be re-imbursed."
"I think it's appalling. It seems Parkwise are able to issue illegal tickets and take people to court for not paying."
Anyone with a Parkwise PCN can call the campaign on 0191 565 7143 or e-mail mail@the peoplesnocampaign.co.uk.

QEH offers amnesty after parking fine fury

Kings Lynn Today

AN OUTCRY over the enforcement of parking charges at Lynn's Queen Elizabeth Hospital has seen an amnesty on fines for last week.
Staff and visitors were outraged at receiving £40 parking fines for not having a valid parking ticket or season ticket for the QEH car park. An enforcement company began working at the hospital earlier this month but the honeymoon period is over and last week it issued thousands of pounds of fines.
Now the QEH will fork out £2,000 to foot the bill for the amnesty after complaints poured in from staff and visitors.
Enforcing the parking rules and issuing fines met with a flood of criticism, including from a night nurse who was fined £40 for not having a season ticket after hers ran out at the end of September."It's ridiculous, the ticket office is open between 9.15am and 3.15pm – but I work nights so trying to renew my season ticket was a problem.
"I stayed behind almost two hours after my shift this week to get a new pass, and when I got back to my car I had a £40 ticket," she said.
But under the amnesty, announced on Friday, she will not have to pay the fine – and nor will anyone else who received a ticket up to Thursday.
Hospital chief executive Ruth May said: "Our new parking policy has been widely publicised among our own staff and the public. A number of penalty tickets have been issued appropriately this week, but it seems there has been a great deal of confusion.
"After discussing this matter with senior staff, we have agreed that fines imposed up until Thursday will be waived as a one-off gesture of goodwill. However, from Friday, any penalty tickets will be enforced in the normal way," added Mrs May.
Drivers who received a parking ticket should take it to the hospital's finance department, giving details of the car and those who have already paid the fine should submit details of when the ticket was received and the fine paid.
Money from parking fines goes to the private enforcement company, but the hospital hopes motorists will be deterred from not buying a ticket so the income from the ticket machines, which does go to the QEH, will increase.