Sevenoaks District Council

ANNUAL PARKING REPORT

2009 – 2010

Kristen Paterson

Community and Planning Services Director

Sevenoaks District Council Annual Parking Report 2009/10

CONTENTS

1. Introduction
2. Annual Report

3. Parking Facilities

4. Parking Enforcement Service

5. Penalty Charge Notices

6. Statistics
7. Financial

8. Future Initiatives

Appendix A – The Parking Penalty Enforcement Process

Appendix B – Examples of Higher and Lower Contraventions

Appendix C – Penalty Charge Notices Issued 2009/10

Appendix D – Breakdown of Contraventions for PCNs Issued

Appendix E – Breakdown of PCNs Issued by Area

Appendix F – Income and Expenditure

Sevenoaks District Council Annual Parking Report 2009/10

1.0 Introduction

1.1 The District Council has operated a joint parking enforcement service in
relation to car parks and on-street parking restrictions since January 2000.
The on-street enforcement is undertaken on behalf of Kent County Council,
the highway authority, with the function delegated by way of an Agency
Agreement.

1.2 Up to 2008, parking enforcement was known as Decriminalised Parking and

operated under the provisions of the Road Traffic Act 1991. However, on 31
March 2008 the legal framework for enforcement authorities transferred to the
Traffic Management Act 2004 with the introduction of Part 6 of the Act. This
gave authorities outside London many of the powers already available to
authorities in London, giving greater consistency across the country. The
main effects were:-

 Decriminalised Parking became Civil Parking Enforcement;

 Parking Attendants became Civil Enforcement Officers (CEOs);
 two levels of Penalty Charge relating to the severity of contravention were
introduced;
 Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) could be issued by post to deal with
vehicle drive-aways and threatening behaviour;
 new contraventions in connection with double parking and parking across
dropped kerbs were introduced;
 independent adjudicators were given increased powers to refer PCN
appeals back to Local Authorities for further consideration.

1.3 In Kent, the change also necessitated PCNs to have separate identifiers to
differentiate between those PCNs issued on-street on behalf of Kent County
Council and those issued by this Council in its off-street car parks. The
identifier is issued by the Traffic Enforcement Centre at Northampton County
Court and takes the form of two letters at the beginning of each PCN number,
intended to represent the enforcing authority. Where previously, all our PCNs
were identified by SV (to represent Sevenoaks), PCNs issued on-street were
changed to begin KS (to represent Kent Sevenoaks). The change applied to
all authorities in the County who were similarly issued with new identfiers for
on-street enforcement.

2.0 Annual Report

2.1 Civil Parking Enforcement was introduced with the aim of keeping traffic
moving, making parking enforcement fairer and more transparent, and
providing motorists with a consistent service across the country. As part of
this, a requirement to produce an annual report falls to the traffic authority,

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Sevenoaks District Council Annual Parking Report 2009/10

which in our case is Kent County Council. District and borough councils
across Kent have assisted in this process. However, it is recognised that it is
good practice for all local authorities undertaking parking enforcement to
produce an annual report to generally inform the public and provide financial
and statistical information on service performance. Hence, the production of
this report.

3.0 Parking Facilities

3.1 The Council provides car parks in the following areas:

Eynsford 21 spaces (no charges)
Kemsing 40 spaces (no charges)
Shoreham 28 spaces (no charges)
Sevenoaks (town centre) 982 spaces (pay & display)
(and on Saturdays at the Council offices 146 spaces (no charges)
Sevenoaks (at lower St Johns Hill) 86 spaces (pay & display)
Sevenoaks (near the Station) 300 spaces (pay & display)
Swanley (near the town centre) 162 spaces (pay & display)
Westerham (on outskirts and in the centre) 145 spaces (pay & display)

3.2 Resident and non-resident (i.e. business) season tickets are available for
many of the above car parks.

3.3 The Council provides on-street pay and display parking in the following areas:
Sevenoaks (town centre) 48 spaces
Sevenoaks (the Vine / Plymouth Drive) 62 spaces
Sevenoaks (St Botolphs Road area) 85 spaces
Sevenoaks (Morewood Close) 40 spaces
Swanley (Goldsel Road / Azalea Drive) 81 spaces
Westerham (centre) 96 spaces

3.4 Information regarding the total number of limited waiting parking spaces on-
street and the length of the various parking restrictions is not available.

3.5 Residents on-street parking schemes operate in Edenbridge, Shoreham,

Sevenoaks, Swanley and Westerham, where residents can purchase permits
so that they can park for longer than the permitted time, usually 2 hours.
Visitor permits are available in the form of a scratch-card and can be
purchased to enable visitors to park for longer periods.

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Sevenoaks District Council Annual Parking Report 2009/10

3.6 Residents who are having building work carried out may apply for a parking
waiver for their contractor to park in restricted areas. A waivers allows parking
in bays and on single yellow lines but may not cover other types of restriction.

3.7 In certain streets in the vicinity of Sevenoaks town centre and Sevenoaks
station, non-resident permits are available to facilitate parking in connection
with business/commuter use where the road capacity allows.

4.0 Parking Enforcement Service

4.1 The Council operates a team of 9 Civil Enforcement Officers (CEOs) and 1
Civil Enforcement Supervisor. Patrols are undertaken throughout the District
over a six day week Monday to Saturday, with Sunday and Bank Holiday
enforcement undertaken from time-to-time as required. Staggered working
hours provide for enforcement throughout the working day and evening.
Enforcement at other times are dealt with on an ad-hoc basis.

4.2 Our CEOs enforce the Council’s car parks and on-street all yellow line
restrictions, parking bays including limited waiting bays and designated bays
for disabled blue badge holders, taxis and police vehicles, bus stops and
pedestrian crossing zig-zag markings throughout the district.

4.3 As might be expected, the majority of waiting and parking restrictions are
located in the main centres of Sevenoaks, Swanley, Edenbridge and
Westerham, where parking enforcement is concentrated, although the more
rural areas are regularly enforced in conjunction with these.

4.4 Enforcement of the two new contraventions of double parking and parking
across dropped kerbs, brought in with the change to the Traffic Management
Act 2004, was delayed while issues in respect to the legislation were clarified.
We are currently liaising with Kent County Council concerning authorisation to
commence enforcement of these contraventions, as required under the terms
of the Agency Agreement.

4.5 We do not directly undertake clamping or vehicle removal as part of our

enforcement process. The Secretary of State for Transport recommends that
this only be considered to deal with persistent evaders where it has not been
possible collect payment, primarily because the keeper is not registered with
the DVLA. Should we wish to commence this, prior authorisation would be
required from the County Council. However, these functions can be, and are,
undertaken by the Council’s appointed Bailiffs as part of the debt recovery
process for unpaid penalty charges.

4.6 All CEOs receive appropriate training to nationally accepted standards before
they are permitted to commence parking enforcement duties. Likewise,

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Sevenoaks District Council Annual Parking Report 2009/10

administration staff receive training in dealing with parking appeals and the
parking enforcement process.

4.7 Our CEOs do not have targets for the number of PCNs to be issued and they
do not work to bonuses. Each parking contravention is considered on its own
merits.

5.0 Penalty Charge Notices

5.1 Civil Parking Enforcement is a legal process. Once a Penalty Charge Notice
(PCN) is issued and if not paid within 28 days, there is a set procedure which
all local authorities must follow in progressing the unpaid PCN through to
recovery of the debt. The procedure is, perhaps, best outlined in a leaflet
produced by the Joint Committee of England and Wales for the civil
enforcement of Parking And Traffic Regulations Outside London (PATROL).
PATROL provides information about parking regulations and enforcement on
behalf of councils that enforce parking regulations outside London Please
refer to Appendix A.

5.2 Anyone issued with a PCN has two opportunities to appeal to the Council.
Informally, if within 28 days of issue, and then formally following receipt of our
next Notice, the Notice to Owner, which is sent to the registered keeper of the
vehicle if the PCN remains unpaid. For appeals received within the 14 day
period for payment at the discounted rate (50%), if the appeal is unsuccessful,
a further 14 day period for payment at the discounted rate is given. Following
unsuccessful appeals to the Council, there is provision to appeal to the
independent adjudication service, the Traffic Penalty Tribunal, who’s decision
is then binding upon both parties. The process is outlined in a document
produced by the Traffic Penalty Tribunal, which has been reproduced in
Appendix A.

5.3 To Facilitate contact by the public, people are able to pay or appeal their PCN
online at the Council’s website, where photographic evidence recorded by the
CEO at the time the PCN was issued can be viewed.

5.4 With the aim of providing clarity, consistency and transparency in parking
enforcement across the County, Kent local authorities and Medway Council
have collectively produced a set of guidance policies for the enforcement and
cancellation of PCNs. These form the basis of our approach to parking
appeals and take account of advice received from bodies such as the
adjudication service. The guidance has been acknowledged by the
Adjudication Service as being a good example of best practice. The document
is available on the Council’s website www.sevenoaks.gov.uk by following
“Transport and Streets / Parking Enforcement / Paying Parking Fines /
Cancellation Policy”.

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Sevenoaks District Council Annual Parking Report 2009/10

5.5 The Traffic Management Act brought in two levels of penalty charge (i.e. the
PCN amount) to provide a higher charge for more serious contraventions,
such as parking on double yellow lines, and a lower charge for less serious
contraventions, such as overstaying time in a limited waiting bay. In
Sevenoaks and across Kent, the higher level penalty charge is set at £70 and
the lower level charge at £50. For information, a list of typical higher and
lower contraventions is attached as Appendix B.

6.0 Statistics

6.1 In the financial year 1st April 2009 to 31st March 2010, 11,251 PCNs were
issued.

6.2 A breakdown of this figure showing the numbers issued on-street and in car
parks, for higher and lower contraventions, numbers appealed, paid and
cancelled, etc., is attached as Appendix C.

6.3 A breakdown of the contraventions for which PCNs were issued is attached as
Appendix D.

6.4 A geographical breakdown of PCNs issued by parish is also provided,

attached as Appendix E.

6.5 In 2009/10 the equivalent of 94 resident and 415 non-resident (i.e.

business/commuter) annual season tickets were issued for the car parks and
the equivalent of 630 resident and 212 non-resident annual permits were
issued on-street.

7.0 Financial

7.1 The provisional income and expenditure figures for the On-street and Car
Parks accounts are shown in Appendix F. These figures are provisional and
are subject to ratification by the Council’s Auditors.

7.2 The expenditure shown for on-street parking excludes an allocation of £89,523
for support services costs.

7.3 The on-street parking account shows a net income of £158,212 for the year
against a budget figure of £227,619. For 2008/09 there was a net expenditure
of £23,044 (which excludes support service costs of £89,211) against a
budgeted net income of £10,062.

7.4 In 2009/10, the on-street account has benefited from increased income from
pay and display parking and permit sales.

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Sevenoaks District Council Annual Parking Report 2009/10

7.5 The car parks account shows a net income of £1,323,546 against a budgeted
net income of £1,392,878. For 2008/09, there was a net income of £1,280,510
against a budgeted net income of £1,334,150.

8.0 Future Initiatives

8.1 Mobile Phone Payments

Currently, people can only pay for parking in the car parks and on-street by
putting the appropriate amount of coinage in a ticket machine to obtain a
ticket. We are aware that in some cases this can involve a large number of
coins. In order to provide a more flexible payment facility, we are investigating
the implications of introducing an optional payment system using mobile
phones, which would work alongside the ticket machines. Such schemes are
rapidly gaining popularity with the public and can offer benefits to both the
customer and the parking provider. This is being undertaken in conjunction
with a number of other local authorities in Kent.

8.2 Safer Parking Scheme

This is an initiative by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) which
has been running for a number of years. The scheme is managed by the
British Parking Association (BPA) and any car park operator can take part.
The purpose of the scheme is to reduce crime and the fear of crime, provide
guidance to owners and operators, and raise awareness of the general public.

8.3 A Park Mark Safer Parking Award is presented for car parks adjudged to meet
certain criteria in respect to crime risk. The Council has joined the scheme
and is currently assessing the suitability of our car parks for submission in
respect to meeting the criteria.

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Sevenoaks District Council Annual Parking Report 2009/10

Any queries or requests for further information should be directed to:

The Parking Manager

The Parking and Amenity Team
Community and Planning Services
Sevenoaks District Council
P O Box 183
Argyle Road
Sevenoaks
Kent TN13 1GN

Email: parkingandamenity@sevenoaks.gov.uk

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THE PARKING PENALTY ENFORCEMENT PROCESS APPENDIX A

12 (continued on next page)

THE PARKING PENALTY ENFORCEMENT PROCESS APPENDIX A

(continued from previous page) 13

 APPENDIX B

EXAMPLES OF HIGHER LEVEL CONTRAVENTIONS

 Parked in a restricted street during prescribed hours

 Parked in a designated disabled person’s parking place without clearly displaying
a valid disabled person’s badge
 Parked or loading/unloading in a restricted street where waiting and
loading/unloading restrictions are in force
 Parked in a residents' or shared use parking place without clearly displaying
either a permit or voucher or pay and display ticket issued for that place
 Parked in a permit space without displaying a valid permit
 Parked in a parking place or area not designated for that class of vehicle
 Parked in a loading place during restricted hours without loading
 Vehicle parked more than 50 cm. from the edge of the carriageway and not within
a designated parking place
 Parked adjacent to a dropped footway
 Parked in a parking place designated for police vehicles
 Parked on a taxi rank
 Stopped on a restricted bus stop/stand
 Stopped in a restricted area outside a school
 Parked in a permit bay without clearly displaying a valid permit

EXAMPLES OF LOWER LEVEL CONTRAVENTIONS

 Parked without clearly displaying a valid pay & display ticket

 Parked after the expiry of paid for time
 Parked without payment of the parking charge
 Parked in a resident’ parking space without clearly displaying a valid residents
parking permit
 Parked in a residents' or shared use parking place displaying an invalid permit,
an invalid voucher or an invalid pay & display ticket
 Not parked correctly within the markings of the bay or space
 Parked for longer than permitted
 Parked without payment of the parking charge
 Parked for longer than the maximum period permitted

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 APPENDIX C

PENALTY CHARGE NOTICES ISSUED 2009/10

Please note:

The percentages shown for items 1) and 2) relate to the total number of PCNs issued and
are rounded to the nearest full percent.

The percentages shown in 3) and 5) only relate to the total for that item.

The data is correct as at 30th April 2010.

Total On-Street Off-Street

1) Total number of PCNs issued 11,251 4,978 (44%) 6,273 (56%)
1a) At the higher level rate (£70) 2,382 (21%) 2,111 (19%) 271 (2%)
1b) At the lower level rate (£50) 8,869 (79%) 2,867 (25%) 6,002 (54%)

2) Total PCNs paid 8,666 (77%) 3,868 (34%) 4,798 (43%)

2a) At the discount rate (within 14 days) 5,945 (53%) 2,626 (23%) 3,319 (30%)
2b) At other rates 2,721 (24%) 1,242 (11%) 1,479 (13%)

3) Appeals and challenges considered by

2,319
the Council
3a) Successful (appeal allowed) 1,400 (60%)
3b) Unsuccessful (appeal rejected) 919 (40%)

4) Cancelled – other reasons (e.g. foreign

514
vehicle or no record at DVLA)

5) Appeals considered by the independent

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adjudication service
5a) Decision in favour of the Council 14 (58%)

5b) Decision in favour of the Appellant 10 (42%)

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 APPENDIX D

BREAKDOWN OF CONTRAVENTIONS FOR PCNS ISSUED

(showing on-street and car park contraventions and whether higher or lower level
penalty, and ranked in percentage order of the total issued)

On-street Parked in a restricted street - yellow lines (higher) 26%

No valid pay and display ticket (lower) 26%
Parked after expiry of time (lower) 15%
Exceeded limited waiting time (lower) 11%
Parked in a taxi rank (higher) 6%
No residents permit displayed (higher) 6%
Not parked correctly (lower) 4%
Parked in a disabled bay with no blue badge (higher) 2%
Parked in a bus stop (higher) 2%
Parked on a pedestrian crossing (higher) 0.5%
Parked during loading/unloading restrictions (higher) 0.5%
Parked in a police bay (higher) 0.5%
Extended period of stay (lower) 0.5%

Car Parks No valid pay and display ticket (lower) 47%

Parked after expiry of time (lower) 40%
Parked beyond the bay markings (lower) 8%
Parked in a reserved bay (higher) 2.5%
Parked in a disabled bay with no blue badge (higher) 2%
Extended period of stay (lower) 0.5%

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BREAKDOWN OF PCNs ISSUED BY AREA APPENDIX E

On-Street Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Total % 2008/09
Ash-Cum-Ridley 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0.0% 0
Brasted 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 3 0.1% 0
Chevening 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.0% 1
Crockenhill 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 7 0.1% 1
Dunton Green 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 2 1 6 0.1% 9
Edenbridge 37 14 9 33 26 32 42 49 23 24 20 23 332 6.7% 218
Eynsford 3 2 0 0 2 4 2 3 1 1 6 3 27 0.5% 18
Farningham 3 1 4 1 4 3 6 12 5 5 3 4 51 1.0% 54
Fawkham 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0% 0
Halstead 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0% 0
Hartley 1 6 2 2 2 1 1 1 3 0 0 0 19 0.4% 2
Hever 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 3 0.1% 1
Hextable 2 0 0 1 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 6 0.1% 2
Horton Kirby S Darenth 1 0 0 6 4 2 2 5 1 0 0 0 21 0.4% 16
Knockholt 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0% 0
Leigh 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.0% 0
Otford 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 4 0 0 2 9 0.2% 5
Penshurst 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0% 7
Riverhead 6 9 13 9 5 11 6 4 5 2 6 6 82 1.6% 60
Seal 1 1 0 0 6 2 2 3 2 1 0 1 19 0.4% 17
Sevenoaks 268 272 244 285 228 223 290 225 174 185 178 238 2,810 56.4% 2,920
Shoreham 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0% 5
Sundridge 0 1 1 0 0 0 2 2 2 4 1 0 13 0.3% 8
Swanley 66 32 45 32 33 29 43 50 49 18 41 52 490 9.8% 294
West Kingsdown 0 2 0 1 3 4 0 2 6 1 3 3 25 0.5% 0
Westerham 70 101 62 112 112 108 87 83 60 77 88 92 1,052 21.2% 706
On-street total 460 444 384 483 429 419 486 441 337 321 349 425 4,978 100.0% 4,344
50% 44% 43% 43% 45% 44% 46% 45% 45% 41% 41% 45% 44% 46%
Car Parks
Edenbridge 1 4 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 0% 22
Sevenoaks 403 500 467 587 472 486 525 508 398 430 460 493 5,729 91% 4,718
Swanley 27 24 19 21 17 10 7 10 8 11 14 13 181 3% 178
Westerham 29 43 31 41 35 33 36 30 13 27 24 13 355 6% 278
Car parks total 460 571 519 650 524 529 568 548 419 468 498 519 6,273 100% 5,196
50% 56% 57% 57% 55% 56% 54% 55% 55% 59% 59% 55% 56% 54%

Combined Total 920 1,015 903 1,133 953 948 1,054 989 756 789 847 944 11,251 9,540

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 APPENDIX F

INCOME AND EXPENDITURE

The income and expenditure figures shown below are provisional and are subject
to ratification by the Council’s Auditors.

On-Street Parking 2009/10

Salaries £ 294,151
Transport £ 14,794
Maintenance £ 53,663
Supplies and Services £ 22,512
Total Expenditure: £ 385,120
Parking waivers -£ 3,466
Pay and display charges -£ 294,814
Penalty Charge Notices -£ 139,465
Permits -£ 105,587
Total Income: -£ 543,332
Balance (net income): -£ 158,212

Car Parks 2009/10

Salaries £ 193,962
Transport £ 9,936
Maintenance £ 63,689
Supplies and Services £ 40,593
Property £ 191,671
Total Expenditure: £ 499,851
Parking waivers -£ 1,076
Pay and display charges - £ 1,356,907
Penalty Charge Notices -£ 149,722
Season Tickets -£ 311,625
Rent -£ 4,067
Total Income: - £ 1,823,397
Balance (net income): - £ 1,323,546

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