Waverley Borough Council Committee System - Committee Document
Meeting of the Environment and Leisure Overview and Scrutiny Committee held on 15/07/2003
Parking Management - East Street, Farnham Redevelopment
Summary & Purpose
The purpose of this report is to consider the implications of the parking management system selected for the redeveloped off-street public car parks in the East Street Regeneration Scheme.
Quality of Life Implications
Natural
Resource Use
Pollution
Prevention and Control
Biodiversity
and Nature
Local
Environment
Social
Inclusion
Safe, Healthy
and Active
Communities
Local
Economy
Negative
Negative
N/A
N/A
Positive
N/A
Positive
APPENDIX A
WAVERLEY BOROUGH COUNCIL
ENVIRONMENT AND LEISURE OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY
COMMITTEE - 15TH JULY 2003
Title
:
PARKING MANAGEMENT - EAST STREET, FARNHAM REDEVELOPMENT
[Wards Affected: All Farnham Wards]
Summary and purpose
:
The purpose of this report is to consider the implications of the parking management system selected for the redeveloped off-street public car parks in the East Street Regeneration Scheme.
Quality of life implications
– social, environmental & economic (sustainable development):
Barrier control systems inevitably increase queuing by vehicles at entrances and exits, resulting in increased harmful vehicle emissions. The additional equipment required for Pay on Foot systems will use more resources than the simple Pay and Display machines. Pay stations and change facilities which accept high denomination bank notes carry additional risk of theft from the user unless CCTV surveillance is introduced. The local economy may be boosted by a payment system which is seen to be more equitable.
E-Government implications
:
It is proposed that all machines, Pay and Display, Pay Stations and Barriers be linked to telemetry to a central control point for instantaneous reporting of malfunctions, usage, cash contents and condition reports. CCTV surveillance will foster a safe environment and the ‘p’ for positive score is on the basis of its introduction.
Legal implications
:
New areas of Pay and Display parking will need to be authorised by a revised Waverley Borough Council (off street parking places) Order to give authority to impose and collect Excess Charges. Pay on Departure parking can be operated without an Order.
Background
1. In 2001, a review of the payment mechanisms for parking in Waverley’s off-street car parks was undertaken, which was reported to the Executive Committee at its meeting on 4th December 2001. The Committee resolved that:-
1. The principle of a Pay on Departure trial be endorsed; and
2. Officers investigate the incorporation of a trial scheme into the Farnham East Street Redevelopment Scheme.
2. The provisional layout of the public parking provision in the development indicates a single level of basement (underground) parking for up to 400 cars. Additional parking provision is under consideration. The payment system adopted will have a significant impact on:-
·
the layout and construction of the car park and the floor area required for its management
facilities;
·
the capital cost of the payment and control equipment;
·
the staff required for its management; and
·
the revenue costs of staff and equipment maintenance.
Payment Systems
Pay and Display (P&D)
3. P&D is the most efficient and economic method of charging for parking time in car parks of this modest size. A small number of simple, low cost, secure, ticket dispensing machines, which can be located in any convenient area of each car park, is the only hardware required. Customers may park before purchasing a ticket and vehicles can enter and exit the car park at all times without impediment. There is therefore little queuing at entrances, which might otherwise reflect back onto the local highway system and motorists cannot become trapped by malfunctioning barriers or other motorists with mislaid tickets or insufficient funds.
4. It has been proven by experience that a very effective enforcement operation can be maintained by a very small number of peripatetic patrol attendants who can effectively monitor parking violations throughout the four main centres of Waverley by constantly varying random patrols. A significant income to the parking revenue account is generated by the Excess Charge Notices (ECN’s) issued for parking violations. Cash collection is a simple safe and secure operation. The coinage is not accessible to the collectors.
5. Many of our customers find P&D convenient, fair and manageable. However, there is a perception, particularly by some traders, that in an effort to buy just sufficient parking time and not to sacrifice too much unexpired parking time, their customers are deterred from lingering in the shopping areas, which limits their purchasing activities. P&D is very convenient for long-stay parkers who are more able to predict their time of return to the car park. However, shopping and town centre social activity is often motivated by impulse and the length of stay at hairdressers, dentists and doctors for instance, is often difficult to predict. Customers must either be constantly mindful of the expiry time of their P&D ticket or must purchase more parking time than might normally be needed. Shoppers in particular, therefore, would prefer a payment system which removes this constraint on their town centre activities and would be seen to be more fair.
Pay on Departure
6. All Pay-on-Departure (PoD) systems require that entry to the car park be controlled by automatic barriers which issue tickets recording the time of entry. Departure is barred by automatic exit barriers which can be activated, depending on the system adopted:-
Pay-on-Foot
The driver, upon returning to the car park, visits an automated pay station located close to the pedestrian entry point to the car park and inserts the ticket received on entry. The parking fee calculated on the time of stay, is displayed by the pay station and upon payment of the amount due, the ticket is automatically validated. This will then activate the barrier when it is inserted into the card reader at the exit. The number of pay stations required will depend on the transaction demand, the physical size of the car park and the number of pedestrian entry points. Normally, at least two pay stations will be required to prevent queuing and to allow flexibility in the case of breakdown, damage, coin-jams or other difficulties. The layout and extent of the proposed East Street Car Park will demand at least four pay stations. As customers will not always have the precise payment due in coins and bank notes and are otherwise trapped in the car park, pay stations must normally have provision for giving change and receiving bank notes. Credit and debit card systems are now also available, but add significantly to the cost of the pay stations and result in longer transaction times.
Pay-on-Exit
The driver will return to his car and drive to the exit barrier where the ticket received on entry may either be presented to an attendant in the kiosk or will need to be inserted into a ticket reader. With the manned system, the attendant will advise the payment due and will perform the cash transaction and activate the barrier. With the unmanned system, the payment due will be displayed and the driver must insert the fee into the exit pay station to activate the barrier. The exit pay station can give change or accept other forms of payment, but adds to its cost and to delays at the car park exit.
7. Pay-on-Foot has proved to be the most practicable pay-on-departure system for busy car parks as it removes the need for permanent manning of the exit kiosk and the associated cash handling risks and reduces queuing at exits. This system is therefore recommended if pay-on-departure is adopted in this car park.
8. The implications of Pay on Departure Systems are detailed at
Annexe 1
.
Resource Implications
9.
Capital Cost
The capital cost of pay stations, automatic barriers, card readers and dispensers and communications links is estimated at £90,000. The permanent manning required for Pay-on-Departure charging will require office and welfare facilities to be built into the car park for the attendants. If CCTV surveillance systems are not to be provided, as part of the overall security package for the commercial centre, it is estimated that up to £60,000 may be required for its installation in the car park. A decision on when, and how, it is monitored will also need to be made.
The car park operation can best be monitored and controlled by a CCTV system dedicated to that function monitored full time by parking attendants. If the CCTV is monitored remotely, considerable additional capital and revenue costs will be incurred in dedicated data links. The cost of Pay and Display machines for the new parking areas can be funded from the existing replacement equipment budget.
Revenue Costs
10. The need for 24 hour attendance for both operational and security reasons will require three full-time employees (three x 8 hour shifts) plus cover for breaks and absences. A fast response maintenance agreement will also be required for the equipment to minimise any down time and consequent loss of income. The ongoing revenue cost of maintaining the system is estimated as £100,000 per annum. The cost of enforcement of Pay and Display in this car park, based on the cost of the current contract, is £24,000 per annum.
Parking Tariffs
.
11. The additional revenue costs (estimated £76,000 per annum) of operating the East Street car parks on a Pay on Foot basis will require funding either through a charge on the parking revenue account or through increased parking tariffs. Dogflud Car Park is currently operated as an ‘Medium Term’ car park with tariffs; 35 pence (45 min stay), 50p (2 hrs), 85p (3hrs), £1.30 (4hrs) and 50p per hour thereafter. South Street Car Park shares the same tariffs up to its four hour maximum stay period. It is estimated that rates would need to increase to a minimum of 50p per hour to cover the additional operating costs.
Conclusion
12. There are proven advantages both in economic terms and in ease of management and maintenance in charging for parking space on a Pay and Display basis, particularly in the modest size of the proposed car park. The year on year increase in parking revenue, despite the short-term (shopper) parking charge being frozen, regardless of inflation, for the last four years, demonstrates that the popularity of the car parks continues to grow despite its payment system. There are significant capital and revenue cost implications in the adoption of alternative payment systems. However, there is a perception by shoppers and particularly by traders that Pay and Display charging is inequitable and mitigates against shoppers’ freedom and peace of mind and thereby constrains their spending activities in the town centre. In response to public demand therefore, the Council has committed, in its car parking strategy, to reviewing the payment system and to considering the introduction of a Pay-on-Departure trial.
13. Pay-on-Foot has the advantage that cash transaction takes place before returning to the car and to exit the car park requires only the insertion of a validated ticket into a barrier ticket reader. This reduces the delays occasioned by the searching for coinage whilst other motorists await their turn to exit. The possible additional income from Pay-on-Departure, resulting from longer stays and the elimination of non-payment will not compensate for the loss of income from ECN’s and loss of spaces. The cost of managing this system in this car park is estimated to be £100,000 per annum.
Recommendation
It is recommend that:
1. the Executive determines the charging mechanism for the East Street Regeneration Scheme parking;
2. if pay on foot is selected, the Executive;
(i) resolves to make provision in the 2004/05 Capital Programme for the estimated capital costs of £90,000.
(ii) determines to fund the additional £76,000 revenue operating costs by increased parking tariffs, in this car park in order to offset the additional costs.
Background Papers
(DoE&L)
There are no background papers (as defined by Section 100D(5) of the Local Government Act 1972) relating to this report.
CONTACT OFFICER:
Name:
R Ellks
Telephone:
01483 523411
E-mail:
rellks@waverley.gov.uk
comms/executive/2003-04/011