I have welcomed the commitment by council transportation officials to look at several ways of easing parking problems in the West End short of a residents’ parking scheme, following the rejection of such a scheme by residents last year.
Along with my West End councillor colleagues, I met with transportation officials yesterday to look at what steps could be considered to improve parking and ease particular problem sites and a number of possible proposals are to be investigated, with recommendations likely to come forward in the autumn.
It was no surprise that the residents’ parking scheme idea was rejected by the majority of residents as the proposed £80 cost and proposal to charge visitors for parking in the area was a pretty unsellable idea, but I am anxious that something positive comes out of the consultation process and, looking at the consultation returns from residents and local businesses, there are a number of good ideas the council should consider taking forward.
The most obvious one is to look again at the extent of waiting restrictions to see what additional parking space could be safely created. This is not only about removing yellow paint off some roads where it would be of benefit to residents, but also in some places making some of the current double yellow lines into single yellow would help residents at weekends and in the evening.
Council transportation officials have agreed to look at this issue street by street in the West End over the forthcoming period and come up with some recommendations to consult local people with. They also agreed to look at ways local car parks could operate better.
A number of other aspects were discussed and I am keen to see a minor amendment to the City Centre Parking Scheme to help constituents in parts of West Port and Hawkhill.
It is vital that some good comes out of the residents’ parking scheme consultation and that all reasonable steps are taken to help West End residents get their cars parked a little easier and I felt the meeting with transportation officials was positive in that regard.