Meeting documents

1. THE ISSUE

1.1. Car parking charges were last reviewed in October 2005. At that time it was hoped that it would be possible for those increases to last for a number of years but it was recognised that it could be necessary to have an earlier review.

1.2. Parking charges are related to the objectives of Transport Policy, an important part of which is to help tackle congestion by encouraging people to consider using Park & Ride sites, Public Transport, cycling and walking instead of bringing a car into the centre of Bath. These price changes help to achieve these objectives.

1.3. The Council's service planning process has identified that projected income has not been achieved, caused by changes in parking behaviour following the introduction of Pay on Foot and an increase in free bus travel. These anticipated amounts were necessary in order to maintain parking investments and other Transport expenditure.

1.5. There is a need to rationalise some off street charges in order to simplify the diverse range of charges in Bath City Centre.

2. RECOMMENDATION

2.1 The Council Executive is asked to approve the new prices as shown in the Appendix, noting that charges in Keynsham, Park & Ride sites and in the Coach Park are unchanged.

2.2 The Director of Customer Services be authorised to take all action necessary to effect such changes.

3. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

3.1. The Government's initiative to introduce free local bus travel for disabled people and those over 60 from April 2006 has cost the Council far more than was budgeted for. The Government set aside £350m in England to implement the change from half fares to free travel but the distribution between Councils was weighted by socio-economic factors. Councils had a reduction in their grant allocation if they had low levels of deprivation and Bath & North East Somerset lost some money for this reason. Demand for free travel has exceeded all expectations and, as the Council is obliged to reimburse bus operators for the revenue they lose, a budget deficit of £650K is forecast for 2006/7.

3.2. Car Parking income in 2006/7 is budgeted to increase by £600K. The current forecast is a deficit of £671K. This has been caused by (i) less income from "Pay on Foot" (introduced in April 2006) when compared to "Pay and Display", (ii) less money received by way of payment from parking fines, (iii) less parking income from those aged over 60 who can now travel free of charge on public transport.

3.3. The price increase proposal in the Appendix increases Car Parking income by an

estimated £1.436m, after allowing for a reduction in demand, thus mitigating the financial pressures above. The Appendix also shows that the proposed prices generally compare favourably with those charged in other cities.

3.4. The Council's medium term financial plan assumes no further increases before 2010.

4. COMMUNITY STRATEGY OUTCOMES

4.1 Periodic review of parking charges is necessary to ensure that we achieve our long

term transport aspirations, which include:

o The creation of a high quality public transport system to ensure that attractive

alternatives exist to the use of the private car

o To reduce congestion and improve air quality

o To improve accessibility

o To secure environmental improvements

o To create an effective and efficient transport system that will encourage the Bath Western Riverside regeneration project and other future developments

The following community strategy outcomes are therefore supported;

a) Taking responsibility for our environment and natural resources now and over the

b) Improving our local transport

c) Improving our local economy

d) Improving our local environment

5. CORPORATE IMPROVEMENT PRIORITIES

These priorities are achieved:

5.1. Improving the Quality of Public Transport/Roads/Pavements and easing congestion

5.2. Developing a sustainable economy

5.3. Improving the public realm

5.4. Improving customer satisfaction

6. Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) KEY LINES OF ENQUIRY

The Council's current corporate assessment, undertaken by the Audit Commission, is a score of 3 out of 4. This report's proposals help to achieve the following "key lines of enquiry" used by the Audit Commission to assess Councils' performance - (i) Community ambition and prioritisation (robust action to deliver improvements in public transport and tackling congestion), (ii) Capacity (increasing the capacity of the council to achieve change and deliver its priorities), (iii) Sustainable Communities and Transport (working with partners such as bus operators to improve the quality of life for the area).

7. THE REPORT

7.1. Government statistics suggest that there will be a 65% increase in congestion between 1996 and 2010 and during this period traffic will grow by 31%. Parking policy can contribute to tackling congestion. Sensible management of city wide parking can help improve the quality of the environment, the local economy and the use of the Highway network.

7.2. Equally it is important to manage Traffic and Parking especially the elements of on and off street parking supply and their enforcement as part of the local transport plan and as part of city centre and environmental management.

7.3. We are one of the very few Local Authorities experiencing growth in public transport usage and our Transport strategy assumes this growth will continue. With a projected loss of over 500 spaces at Ham Gardens, when redevelopment of Southgate begins in 2007/08, this strategy becomes all the more important. It will also be necessary for the Council to expand existing Park & Ride sites and provide a site to the East of Bath.

7.4. Our longer term plans include significant improvements in our public transport infrastructure including bus rapid transit and showcase bus routes, increases in Park & Ride provision, pedestrian improvements and real time travel information systems as well as encouraging firms to put together Travel to Work plans.

7.5. The Government's new concessionary fares scheme was a welcome initiative to provide free local bus travel for disabled people and those over 60. However, funding has been insufficient to cover the Council's costs. In addition, parking income has not increased as expected. A large budget deficit therefore needs to be recovered to maintain our transport investment. An increase in Parking Charges will influence driver behaviour, help achieve our aspiration to reduce congestion, encourage Public Transport usage and secure environmental improvements.

7.6. At the same time we are able to address some anomalies in our Price policy rationale; for example, short stay car parks currently have different pricing regimes.

7.7. These price proposals apply to Bath on street and off street parking. Charges in Keynsham, in the Park & Ride and the Coach Park remain unchanged.

7.8. Charges proposed reflect the length of stay and usage. Park and Ride is the lowest cost option for those visiting Bath, followed by Long Stay off street and then on street parking and Short Stay car parks. This hierarchy encourages sustainable travel such as the use of Park and Ride/ Public Transport / Cyclists and Motorcyclists who do not pay parking charges.

7.9. Detailed proposals are outlined in the appendix, along with a comparison with charges applicable in 2006 in other cities.

8. RISK MANAGEMENT

9. OTHER OPTIONS CONSIDERED

9.1 Alternative charges have been considered and rejected as being either too costly to be borne by the average motorist or insufficient to enable the Council to achieve its Transport objectives.

10. CONSULTATION

10.1 In preparing this report we have consulted the Executive Councillor; Overview & Scrutiny Panel; Section 151 Finance Officer; Chief Executive; Monitoring Officer

11. ISSUES TO CONSIDER IN REACHING THE DECISION

Customer Focus; Sustainability; Corporate; Other Legal Considerations

12. ADVICE SOUGHT

The Council's Monitoring Officer (Council Solicitor) and Section 151 Officer (Strategic Director - Support Services) have had the opportunity to input to this report and have cleared it for publication.