The Traffic Penalty Tribunal has reported that councils in England and Wales issued 4,035,555 parking tickets in the 12 months ending in March 2009, compared with 2.5 million in 2003 and 794,851 in 2000 to 2001.
The rapid increase is due to the fact that in 2000 only 48 town halls had the powers, while five years later, the figure rose to 150. In 2007, the number reached 194 and at present 272 councils have the on-street parking in their hands.
“With the number of parking tickets at an all-time high and absolutely no evidence that an increased penalty amount will lead to better compliance, as some councils are suggesting. We believe demands for any raising of the penalty level are more about plugging holes in some council coffers.” said an AA spokesman.
“The law does not allow local authorities to use parking as a means of making money – however hard pressed their budgets. Local authorities that are showing a big surplus in their parking budgets should look carefully at every area of their operation – particularly in the back office where challenges are considered,” added Professor Stephen Glaister of the RAC Foundation.
Councils outside London now have the power to use CCTV cameras to catch motorists parked illegally, enabling a ticket to be issued by post later. This makes it harder to launch an appeal to the ticket because of the time elapsed.
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