Verbal introduction to the Sevenoaks District Council, Parking Enforcement Manager and opportunity for Members to ask questions regarding Parking Enforcement.
(No report)
Minutes:
Item taken after Item 6 on the agenda.
Declarations of Interest: None
Petitions, Public Questions, Statements: None
Officer in attendance: Nikki Tagg, Projects Specialist, Tandridge District Council (TDC) and John Strachan, Parking Services Manager, Sevenoaks District Council (SDC)
The Tandridge Officer advised the Local Committee that, subject to the final contract being signed, from 1st April 2020, Sevenoaks District Council will be contracted to carry out on street parking enforcement in the Tandridge District, on behalf of Tandridge District Council. The new contract with Sevenoaks DC will allow for parking enforcement to be carried out Monday to Saturday with Sunday on an ad hoc basis when required. Tandridge DC will have access to information, receive monthly updates and will have the ability to request responsive enforcement visits when necessary. Sevenoaks DC and Tandridge DC will provide the Local Committee with regular updates, Key Performance Indictors and trends relating to the service.
The Parking Services Manager, informed the Local Committee of the work carried out by the Sevenoaks Parking Team. The two parking officers, from the incumbent (Reigate and Banstead Borough Council) will be absorbed within his team, with two members of the team working in the Tandridge District each day. The role of an Enforcement Officer includes ensuring that vehicles are parked legally, not causing an obstruction, having a presence outside of schools for safety and supporting commercial areas to help with churn.
Member Discussion – Key Points
1) The Chairman thanked the Sevenoaks Parking Manager for attending the meeting and welcomed the new contract to provide regular parking enforcement in the District.
2) Warlingham Parish Council have been budgeting to fund an extra presence in the village to enforce parking restrictions. It was asked if a site meeting could be arranged with the officer to explain the issues in greater detail?
The Parking Manager advised that it may be helpful to review the request to fund of additional enforcement in Warlingham until a few months after the contract has started. Residents, businesses and the Parish Council may notice the change in parking in the village as tickets are issued from the 1 April, which may resolve the matter. However, happy to discuss further if necessary.
3) It was asked if two Enforcement Officers would be enough to cover the whole of Tandridge?
The Parking Manager advised that in Sevenoaks, the enforcement officers are cost neutral. The contract with TDC is a commercial bid and currently for one year. For this year, two enforcement officers from his team will be deployed each day. There is the potential to increase this, however Sevenoaks District Council would need assurances that the contract would be extended beyond one year, due to cost of an additional vehicle and the equipment would be required. Additional officers could cover the Tandridge area on an ad hoc basis during the first year if deemed necessary to do so.
Clarification was provided that TDC do not receive money from SCC to provide on street parking enforcement. TDC will be paying Sevenoaks DC for the service and the revenue generated from tickets will be returned to TDC. It is hoped that this will be cost neutral.
4) If a yellow line is not continuous due to the road surface being damaged, can the parking restriction still be enforced?
The Parking Manager advised that this is decided on a case by case basis, and the Enforcement Officer will make a judgement. Sevenoaks DC are able to issue warning notices, which records the car registration but does not issue a ticket unless the vehicle contravenes the restriction on another occasion.
5) It was asked how is time allocated for visits to towns, such as Oxted and Caterham, and the more rural communities who also need enforcement? Will enforcement be carried out on a set day or will it be random?
The Parking Manager advised that the visits are random and times would vary. Whilst less tickets are issued in rural areas compared with the more populated areas, the team will work responsively and will attend the villages to enforce parking restrictions. Enforcement Officers will not be able to issue a ticket to all vehicles that are parked in contravention of the restrictions, however when people see that Enforcement Officers operate regularly in the area, it is anticipated there would be around 95% compliance of parking restrictions.
6) Do officers have flexibility in the times that they work?
The Parking Manager advised that they currently deploy officers to work till 8pm in Sevenoaks due to their night time economy. For Tandridge this will be on an ad hoc basis. Should there be a problem area of dangerous parking, this can be reported and Enforcement Officers will target those particular areas.
7) How often will Members receive the reporting data from Sevenoaks DC on the Key Performance Indicators?
The system generates automatic reports, and these can be produced on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. For GDPR reasons, some details are redacted, however information such as number of tickets issued and location can be made available. It was highlighted, by the TDC Officer, that this contract includes a ‘time to respond to issues’ performance indicator and Members will also receive a satisfaction survey after 6 months on their views of the new service.
Members felt that it would be helpful at the start of the contract to have monthly reports, this could then change to quarterly. It was agreed that the Parking Manager would generate a suite of sample reports and members of the Local Committee could decide what information they would like to see at an informal meeting.
8) How will Members and resident be able to report issues online to Sevenoaks?
This has not yet been finalised, however work is being done with TDC IT to ensure that reporting is easy and clear for residents and Members. It is anticipated that a link will be provided on the Tandridge District Council webpage that will direct automatically to Sevenoaks DC parking reporting form.
9) Has the list of defected signage been provided by the current enforcement contractor?
The list of defected signs from the incumbent, has not yet been received but it is expected before the new contract starts, so the signs can be rectified so that tickets can be issued.
10) An update was requested on the meters in Caterham, it was asked when they can be expected and why has there been a delay?
The TDC Officer advised she appreciated the disappointment and frustration for residents and businesses that the meters will not be installed by the 1st April. The signs and meters are very specific, as offer free parking for a set period with no return, and there have been some technical issues on the signage and meters which have caused the delay. It is anticipated that the end of April/ May is more realistic timeframe for their installation.
11) It was asked if enforcement would be carried out on Saturdays?
Saturdays would be included however this would be at the detriment of a week day.
12) It was asked if the Parish Clerks could also receive the monthly information on enforcement carried out in their area?
It was advised that the reports could be generated in this way and available to clerks if they wished.
The Chairman thanked the Officers for attending and answering Members questions. On behalf of the Committee he was delighted that this was now moving forward and looked forward the start of the new contract in April.