- More than 100 people attend parish meeting about parking in town
- Claims that the system is abused and that it’s hard to park at peak times
- Some residents concerned at planned increase in cost of permits
- Should wardens crack down on people misusing the scheme? Take our poll below
AN ‘ABUSED’ residential parking scheme in St Helier is to be reviewed after parishioners criticised the regime at a meeting on Monday night.
More than 100 people gathered at the Town Hall at a parish assembly to discuss resident’s parking zones, which they said were being misused by other Islanders.
Concerns were raised recently after it was suggested that the price of an annual permit for the three main zones – Cheapside, St Mark’s and St Thomas’s – be increased by ten per cent.
Following that, St Helier Deputy Jackie Hilton suggested the issue be discussed at last night’s parish assembly so residents could have their say.
Most said the scheme, which allows permit holders to park in designated spaces, was a parking ‘lottery’.
Others said it was not policed effectively enough and that it was often abused by parents who stopped in residential spaces when picking up their children from nearby schools.
It has been proposed that the permits increase in price to around £300 to make up a shortfall in funding for the scheme, which was intended to be self-sustaining.
Following the meeting St Helier Constable Simon Crowcroft pledged to conduct an updated survey of the spaces to see what capacity there was and to talk to the schools in the zones to make sure parents knew not to use residential spaces.
He also said he would talk to TTS Minister Eddie Noel about getting assistance with policing the parking zones and get more parishioners involved in the parish’s parking steering group.
At the two-hour meeting Rouge Bouillon resident Frank O’Neil said: ‘We’ve been asked to pay £300 for a lottery ticket. You enter into it to get a space, but you don’t get one allocated.’
Resident Craig Johnson of West Park Avenue added: ‘My experience of the system is very simply – we have people using the system who aren’t paying for it.’
John Stievenard, St Helier’s director of technical and environmental services, explained that the scheme cost £180,000, but only brought in £161,982. With the proposed increase, he added, that figure would rise to around £178,000.
St Helier resident Louise Journeaux said that visitor parking could be more clearly marked and asked whether ex-St Helier residents were holding on to their permits after leaving the parish.
Parishioner Edward Trevor was alone in his suggestion that the permit price was far too low and that those who owned a car needed to take parking costs into account. He pointed out that a season ticket for a public car park cost £1,479 and that private parking added between £20,000 and £30,000 to the value of a property.
After the meeting Mr Crowcroft said he was pleased people had expressed an interest in joining the parking steering group.
‘Lot’s of good ideas came out of the meeting,’ he said.
- Permits are available to anyone who lives within a Residents’ Parking Zone, has a Jersey-registered vehicle, and does not have off-street parking at their premises.
- A resident may not hold more than one permit at the same time.
- A permit is only valid for the vehicle for which it was issued and is not transferable to any other vehicle.
- The parish of St Helier administers the Residents Parking scheme on behalf of the Transport Minister. Application forms are available online here and from the Town Hall.
- Completed application forms must be submitted to customer services on the ground floor of the Town Hall, along with proof of residence, registration document for the vehicle and payment.
- If a vehicle is wider than 6’6″ (2 metres) and weighs more than 1600kgs, then the parish cannot issue a permit.
- There are limits to the number of permits issued in each zone, to ensure the probability of finding a parking space. As such, there is currently a waiting list in each of the zones due to their high popularity.
- Temporary Residents’ Permits are available for contractors employed to carry out works within the zones at a cost of £6 + GST per day.
- Paycard parking for visitors is available within the zones daily between 9 am and 10 pm. However, there is no visitor parking within the zone between 10 pm and 9 am.
- Visitor paycard parking within the zones is identified by roadside signage that also stipulates the periods parking is permitted.
- St Helier’s community support team regularly patrol the zones and are given additional support by St Helier’s honorary police, the roads’ inspectors and others.
