Welbeck Street: parked vehicles don't leave much space for cyclists.
Following a review and a public consultation exercise, Westminster is consulting
the public about its new car parking policies.
This is the first time in a decade that Westminster has carried out a thorough
review of its parking policies. With ten years of economic, demographic and physical
changes – not to mention major changes such as the Congestion Charge, the Mayor’s
Cycle Hire Scheme, the Low Emission Zone and new forms of green transport –
the council needs to make sure its policies are still appropriate for residents, businesses and visitors.
The draft policies include the following proposals:
to introduce, on weekdays and on an experimental basis, controls and charges
in Zone E and G in the West End at night time (ie after 18:30)
to introduce, on an experimental basis, charges in Zones E, G and F3 in the
West End on Saturday and Sundays
to increase charges for second, third or more residents’ parking permits per
household within the region of a 100% increase for second and subsequent permits
granted.
to review the impact of increased use of the highway and kerbside by cyclists following
the successful introduction and further roll-out of the Mayor’s Barclays Cycle
Hire initiative.
These proposals could potentially benefit cyclists by clearing kerbside space, reducing
the risk of car doors opening and reducing traffic volumes.
The consultation period runs till 23rd June 2011. Further information is available on
Westminster's web site.
Low Level of Car Use
The car parking review showed just how low the level of car use is in Westminster:
Of the 905 respondents to the Stage 1 Consultation, only 8% daytime and 21%
night-time visitors said they usually travelled to the West End by car and van -
and required on-street parking.
The Society of London Theatre advised that only 16% of patrons arrived by car,
whereas the vast majority use the Underground, Surface Rail, London Bus, walk etc.
Across the seven Westminster Civic District streets, a sample of visitors were
asked how they travelled to each centre. On average some 52% walked to the shops,
which contrasts with a low 6% who declared they drove.
