PLANS for a new residents’ parking scheme on and around a busy Leicester road have been given the go-ahead.
Leicester City Council will introduce the permit-only parking scheme in the Evington Road area to help address local concerns about the number of commuter and business vehicles using residential streets for free all-day parking.
The council has now completed the formal consultation and decision-making process to progress the Traffic Regulation Order required to change parking restrictions on the affected streets and introduce the new scheme.
The proposed scheme will include mainly terraced streets adjoining Evington Road. In total this will affect around 1,300 homes and businesses.
It is anticipated that the new scheme will come into effect from mid-November. This will follow a two-week warning period, where warning notices will be issued to vehicles without valid permits.
More than 20 streets, on both sides of Evington Road, will be covered by the new scheme. These include Chepstow Road, Conway Road, Cromer Street, Dashwood Road, Devana Road, Draper Street, Evington Parks Road, Evington Road, Glossop Street, Halsbury Street, Hazlewood Road, Kedleston Road, part of Kimberley Road, Kingston Road, Linton Street, St Lyme Road, Osmaston Road, Rowsley Street and Sawley Street. Herschell Street, Mundella Street, and Ripon Street – which already have residents’ parking in place – will be moved into the new scheme area.
Short-term parking bays will be provided to support businesses in the area. These will allow visitors to park for up to one hour. There will also be 10-minute limited waiting bays created on parts of Evington Road to cater for vehicles stopping to collect takeaway food. Loading bays will be provided for local businesses.
New double-yellow lines will be introduced at junctions to help tackle congestion and other issues caused by dangerous and inconsiderate parking.
Cllr Geoff Whittle, assistant city mayor for environment and transport, said: “We’ve seen in other parts of the city how the introduction of residents’ parking schemes can be an effective way of tackling parking problems in local neighbourhoods by freeing up spaces for the people who live there.
“In this case, the ward councillors committed to address residents’ concerns over problems caused by commuter parking and takeaway traffic.
“Officers have carried out detailed consultation work to gauge the level of support for the proposed scheme, which streets to include and what provisions to make for short-term visitor parking, to address those problems and help ensure local businesses don’t suffer. We are now planning to introduce the new scheme in the autumn.”
The news has been welcomed by the local Stoneygate ward councillors.
Cllr Raffiq Mohammed said: “We welcome the introduction of the residents' parking scheme, which Stoneygate councillors have been working on for the last two years.”
Cllr Yasmin Surti said: “We hope the scheme will alleviate some of the ongoing problems experienced by our constituents living in and around Evington Road.”
Cllr Manjula Sood added: “We will continue to work proactively to make further improvements to enhance the area on behalf of all our constituents.”
Under the city council’s current parking permit scheme, charges will be £35 per year for a residents’ permit; £100 per year for a business permit tied to a particular vehicle, and £150 for a business permit that can be transferred between vehicles. Visitor permits are available for residents, at either £40 for a year, or £2 for 24 hours. Permits for landlords and carers are also available.
Drivers who fail to display a relevant parking permit within a residents’ parking zone face a penalty charge notice of £70, reduced to £35 if paid within 14 days.
Vehicles displaying a blue badge will be exempt from the 'permit holders only' restriction.
Plans to extend the existing Highfields residents’ parking scheme, to include seven additional streets off nearby St Peter’s Road, have been postponed while further research is carried out.
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