Romford Councillor calls on Council to take a considerate and not heavy handed approach to parking enforcement.

‘If we’re not careful, we will scare drivers away from Romford completely. Then the council will have no-one left to pay for parking and no one to shop here.’ 

At a meeting of all Councillors, on 27 March, Councillor David Taylor called for Havering Council to take a more “considered” approach to parking enforcement.

Councillor Taylor began by asking the Labour and RA led council whether they had plans to increase parking enforcement in the year ahead, after it was revealed that the council had failed to meet its own income targets by £1.8m. Councils that raise income from parking, such as through fines, must ringfence this income to be spent on parking and highways. If there is a shortfall in the income versus the cost then the council’s general fund can fill the gap. 

In a recent Cabinet report, Havering Council revealed that it has failed to meet its parking income target by £1.8m. This was attributed, in part, to lower income from parking fines. 

Councillor Taylor said that this caused him concern as it may mean that Havering goes “full steam ahead” in trying to get more money in from fines. 

“This figure worries me, because the council is going to have to find the money from somewhere and they seem intent on squeezing every penny out of Romford’s drivers. This shortfall may see the council go full steam ahead with their fines”. Councillor Taylor said. 

“I have had increasing numbers of residents contact me about heavy-handed enforcement. People are being fined for having part of a tyre over the white line. Just this week, a local business got a fine because a recycling lorry stopped to collect a bin. The lorry was ‘observed’ for 1 minute according to the enforcement notice”.

Responding to Councillor Taylor’s follow-up question at the council meeting, in which Councillor Taylor asked Cabinet Members to advise a more considered approach to enforcement, the HRA Cabinet Member told Councillor Taylor that there should be no grey areas. 

Taylor disagrees and said;

“The punishment should fit the crime, having a tyre over a line or collecting recycling is not the same as wilfully parking without a permit. In many instances, residents are paying more and more expensive parking prices only to have more and more heavy-handed enforcement. 

If we’re not careful, we will scare drivers away from Romford completely. Then the council will have no-one left to pay for parking and no one to shop here. 

It’s time they think twice and take a more considered approach”.

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