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Last night, the new Transport and Connectivity Policy Committee, chaired by Green Councillor Ed Plowden, passed a range of new transport measures, including the adoption of the proposal for an outline business case for workplace parking levy.
Cllr Ed Plowden said, “I am delighted that after years of being kicked down the road, this committee has voted to start looking at setting up a workplace parking levy. This has worked wonders in places like Nottingham not only to raise revenue to invest for mass transit, but also ensuring clean air, for a healthier, safer city for all.”[1]
The committee also voted on a range of parking measures, including to increase the cost of a first car in residents parking schemes (RPS) from £56 to £124. This is far less than the more than tripling that was proposed by the previous Labour administration, and Cllr Plowden says, more equitable. [2]
“The increase to £124 for a first car permit is solely based on the money needed to upkeep RPSs. he continues. “Any revenue raised from second or third car permits will go back into improving transport across the city.
“Whilst we understand that sometimes private cars are essential, we also know that taking action for the health and safety of everyone in our communities, including those who can’t or choose not to drive, means helping all of us to make shifts in the way we travel.
“These essential shifts are not going to happen on their own and managing parking is widely agreed to be one of the fundamentals of a robust transport strategy.”
The committee also agreed to set up two task and finish groups, one to look at a modern and holistic kerbside and parking strategy and one to look at supported bus services.
Councillor Rob Bryher, who will be chairing the kerbside and parking strategy task and finish group said: “The issues of the way the kerbside is used and parking more generally were completely ignored by the previous Labour administration. There has been no holistic parking strategy since at least 2016, despite pavement parking, lack of cycle parking and electric vehicle charging, and the need for better managed parking being major issues for residents.
“We will work cross-party to ensure that Bristol does more to make pavements accessible for pedestrians, wheelchair users and those with buggies and prams, and create streets that are healthy, neighbourly and have more mobility options for residents.”
While these votes were successful, the committee did not vote to implement charging at some district car parks which are currently free or to remove the 30-minute free parking tariff in all residents parking schemes. The four Greens were in favour of these proposals, but were outvoted by the other 5 committee members from other parties.
Cllr Emma Edwards, Leader of the Green Group and member of the Transport Committee said,
“It is surprising to see Labour U-turn on this motion, since this proposal was part of the previous Labour administration’s budget. As Leader of the Green Group I am in favour of exploring all options that can reduce congestion, improve air quality and raise money to improve transport for everyone in our city, so I’m disappointed that some of these changes were not passed.
“However, as I have said before, no one party has a monopoly on good ideas and that’s exactly what the committee system aims to utilise. We will now continue working cross party and with the communities that we serve, to make up the £276,000 a year that the council spends on keeping district car parks free in another way to make sure we balance the budget in the best interests of the people of Bristol.
“It was great to see the committee model working to reach democratic consensus on a range of options to best serve our wonderful city. Thank you to the chair and officers who put in a huge amount of work prior to this committee to make it a success.”
The committee also voted to approve a business case and full planning application for the new Bristol Regional Cycling Hub in Lawrence Weston.
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