ePetition - Reintroduce scratch card voucher parking

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ePetition details

Reintroduce scratch card voucher parking

We the undersigned petition Brighton & Hove Council to reintroduce scratch card voucher parking alongside the new pay-by-phone system to give residents and visitors a genuine choice over how they pay for parking in the City.

A significant proportion of the City's residents and visitors are experiencing difficulties due to the increased use by the Council of pay-by-phone parking. This particularly affects many elderly people and those without, or who have difficulty using, mobile phones. To make their life easier we would like to see the reintroduction of scratch card vouchers as a means of paying for parking in the city.

This ePetition ran from 14/10/2016 to 25/11/2016 and has now finished.

1715 people signed this ePetition.

Council response

Response provided by the Chair of the Environment, Transport & Sustainability Committee at their meeting on 11 October 2016:

"A voucher system used to be available as an alternative to paying for parking by cash in a small area of the city but was withdrawn following committee agreement almost 10 years ago.
They were withdrawn following feedback from the Traffic Penalty Tribunal about the signage and use of the vouchers which some drivers found confusing. Drivers had to scratch off their arrival time and date and display the correct amount of vouchers for their stay, whereas other payment systems work this out automatically.

Since the withdrawal of the vouchers the number of PCNs issued has fallen by around 30,000 per year partly as a result of fewer mistakes being made by drivers using the voucher system. The voucher system was also very expensive to administer with costs including

- the invoicing of up to 200 outlets
- a member of staff and van required to restock them
- voucher printing costs
- signage costs which would be considerable if the scheme were to be re-introduced citywide

Very few councils still now sell parking vouchers as a result.

Drivers wishing to pay for parking in cash at an outlet rather that at a machine or by phone can do so at one of 150 PayPoint outlets in the city. And the substantial cost which would be involved in reinstating a scheme which could even outweigh income received from their sale. And of course recently, the Policy, Resources & Growth Committee did agree to the introduction of pay by card parking system and we hope and we feel that will be a very easy and convenient method for motorists to use".

 


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