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ITEM CMDT3

CABINET MEMBER FOR TRANSPORT – 23 NOVEMBER 2006

SPECIAL PARKING AREAS OUTSIDE OXFORD – ENFORCEMENT ARRANGEMENTS

Report by Head of Transport

1. A project to extend de-criminalised parking to the whole of the county is underway giving the County Council enforcement powers to regulate on-street parking.
2. This report requests authorisation to enter into an agency agreement with the District Councils to delegate the County Council’s on-street parking enforcement powers when the Designation Orders which create Special Parking Areas and bring in de-criminalised parking have been made.
3. A resolution from the District Councils to enter into an agency agreement will also be needed in due course.

Background

4. The former Executive of the County Council approved a project extending de-criminalised parking enforcement to the whole of the county. That project is included within the Local Transport Plan 2006 – 2011. The reasons for the project are:

• better enforcement of parking regulations to reduce danger, nuisance and congestion caused by illegal parking;
• enabling the use of camera enforcement on bus lanes to reduce obstruction and increase service reliability;
• the likelihood of Thames Valley Police ending their parking enforcement activities;
• the provision of powers in the Traffic Management Act for the Secretary of State to compel change to de-criminalised enforcement.

5. The project necessarily includes the District Councils as partners because the Department for Transport will require the Special Parking Areas to include their off-street car parks and for them to convert to a de-criminalised parking regime. This is to simplify things for the public so that there is just one system of parking control that applies whether they park on or off-street.
6. The District Councils have all agreed to take part in the project and have been active in discussing how they can co-operate between themselves and with the County Council to carry out enforcement in the most efficient and effective way. The District Councils are represented on the Project Board and there are regular meetings between the County Council and all of the District Councils as a group.

Project Options and Progress

7. Providing a single, unified enforcement regime covering both on and off-street parking requires the County Council to delegate its on-street enforcement powers to the District Councils, or the other way round as regards off-street enforcement, by means of an agency agreement. An alternative would be a contractual arrangement between the councils without delegation of functions or joint use of an external enforcement contract arranged by either County or District Councils. There is no obligation to contract out the enforcement activities and in any case there must be staff employed by the relevant council to deal with appeals against penalty charge notices issued for parking contraventions so as to separate consideration of representations from the "front line" issuing of penalty notices.
8. In agreeing to join in with the de-criminalisation project the Cabinets/Executives of each District Council did so on the basis that they wished to continue to use their own staff to enforce their off-street parking regulations and to take on the on-street enforcement role. A number of them see a synergy between on-street enforcement and the wider street management role. All have a natural concern that the arrangements will not be financially detrimental to their car park operations.
9. The District Councils have done an impressive amount of work between themselves to identify how they can best provide an efficient, effective and consistent parking enforcement service across the county. Early discussions with the District Councils centred on draft heads of terms that an arrangement of whatever kind would need to cover. These discussions with the District Councils have led to the conclusion that the most advantageous arrangement would be for the County Council to enter into an agency agreement with each of the District Councils to delegate its on-street parking enforcement function. This will provide for the complete enforcement service from beginning to end in all circumstances to be the responsibility of the District Councils so that the public deal only with one authority for any parking contravention be it on or off-street.
10. The possible alternative of the County Council contracting with the District Councils to provide on-street parking attendants would be more complex to set up and run. It would mean that the County Council would have to have its own parking team to deal with appeals against penalty notices for on-street contraventions. This would require more complex ICT provisions that have to be accessible to both the District and County Councils and would be bound to lead to confusion for the public as to who was actually dealing with parking enforcement.
11. A first draft of an agency agreement has been produced by the County Council’s Legal Services and has been commented on by the District Councils. There is still a good deal to do to produce an agency agreement that all are content with, particularly as regards financial, performance and policy provisions, but the comments are constructive and the issues raised are manageable ones. The agency agreement will need to ensure that the official guidance on de-criminalised parking is complied with. The draft agreement allows for future changes in the way enforcement is carried out including one District Council carrying out the service for another and also contracting out the service if this becomes something that the authorities wish to pursue.
12. It would be helpful now to confirm that this is the way forward and that further development of the agency agreement will be productive in formulating the best arrangement for de-criminalised parking arrangements. The final version of the agency agreement will be subject to approval of the Head of Transport and the Cabinet Member for Transport.

Financial and Staff Implications

13. The project to extend decriminalised parking enforcement is being undertaken on the basis that it will be self-financing. The preliminary scoping study indicated that it would be. A more detailed financial modelling exercise is being undertaken to confirm this for both on and off-street parking. There is a requirement to submit a financial model demonstrating that enforcement will be self-financing with the application to the Department for Transport for Special Parking Area designation orders.
14. The District Councils’ investment costs to provide on-street parking enforcement will be paid by the County Council. A proportion of their conversion costs to changing to de-criminalised parking for off-street may also need to be reimbursed, the financial modelling will have an influence on this. The projected costs are within the amount allowed for ICT in the estimated cost of the project and the District Councils have been working towards minimising ICT costs by developing an existing system already in place and all sharing the use of this system. ICT costs would be incurred in all of the options for enforcement services.
15. It is envisaged that operational costs will be met from enforcement income. The treatment of any operational surplus or deficit on the parking operation will be part of the further work on the agency agreement.
16. There are no staffing implications for the Council because complete operational responsibility will be with the District Councils including dealing with all representations and pursuing payments.

Risks and Uncertainties

17. Achieving a self-financing service for both on and off-street parking enforcement and how this is reflected in the agency agreement is clearly a major issue for all concerned. The risk will be managed through the financial modelling which will help to design a service that achieves this objective.
18. The requirement to produce an agreement which satisfies five authorities might be seen as potentially problematic. But so far the District Councils have acted in unison with the help of their own professional advice and this is a low risk on the evidence to date. Continued dialogue with the District Councils and inclusion as a core partner in the project will help keep this a low risk.
19. There needs to be a resolution by both authorities to enter into an agency agreement. Risk of disagreement by members will be minimised by ensuring that the document is complete and answers all concerns before seeking final agreement. Briefings for District Council members are planned before reaching this point and before undertaking any public consultation.
20. Full involvement of Legal Services in the drafting of the agency agreement will minimise any legal risks.

How this Fits with Corporate and Local Transport Plan Priorities

21. Extending de-criminalised parking to the whole of the county is a central plank of parking policy in the Local Transport Plan and will be helpful in reducing congestion, improving bus reliability and improving safety. Well managed parking can help the economic life of towns by ensuring the maximum turnover of parking in time-limited spaces.
22. It is important for CPA reasons that the Council is seen to be good at implementing the requirements of the Traffic Management Act. Adopting the use of de-criminalised parking will be a very significant measure of how well we do this.
    

Recommendations

23. The Cabinet Member for Transport is RECOMMENDED to agree to concluding an agency agreement with each of the District Councils to delegate the Council’s on-street parking enforcement powers subject to:

1. final approval of the provisions of the agreement by the Head of Transport and the Cabinet Member for Transport; and
2. the agreement being contingent on a successful application to the Department of Transport for the necessary civil enforcement powers.

(Statement of Decision)

STEVE HOWELL
Head of Transport

Background papers Nil

Contact officer: Richard Dix, Assistant Head of Transport; Tel. 01865 815663

November 2006

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