Luton Council could have to spend around £700,000 a year to enforce existing parking restrictions in Bury Park instead of introducing the controversial trial red route, a new report has revealed.
The figure comes as the newly-appointed Liberal Democrat-led administration prepares to consider the future of the planned red route at its first Executive meeting tonight (5 October), with councillors being asked to back measures which can be introduced without the need for a red route designation.
The council says providing enforcement for 16 hours a day at a level comparable with what could be achieved through a red route would require at least 15 additional staff, including 12 civil enforcement officers, at an estimated additional cost of around £700,000 a year.
The paper says the alternative will be considered as part of an independent economic impact assessment comparing the costs and benefits of the proposed traffic improvement and safety measures, particularly the red route, with increased enforcement of existing restrictions.
The assessment is expected to take three months and report back to the Executive early next year. It will consider the impact on local businesses, the benefits of reduced congestion and improved pedestrian access, wider social and economic costs and benefits, parking fine revenue and the overall value for money of the proposals.
The development follows a change in political control at the council, with the previous Labour administration replaced after two decades in charge, following last month’s vote of no confidence.
The red route had previously been approved by the Executive as an 18-month experimental scheme, but its implementation was subsequently challenged through scrutiny and Full Council.
Full Council asked for the red route to be postponed while the council examined its impact on businesses, considered the use of low-emission buses in Bury Park, looked at increasing enforcement and carried out a full appraisal of potential additional parking.
The new report says officers have now responded to those recommendations and the Executive is being asked to agree that action is required to tackle congestion, safety and inappropriate parking in Bury Park.
It is also being asked to bring forward elements of the scheme which do not require a red route designation, including removing parked vehicles from around formal pedestrian crossings, extending loading bay hours and maximum stays and considering an interim increase in enforcement officers, subject to resources.
The proposed red route would otherwise have operated for 18 months under an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order.
The council says it would not introduce additional restrictions beyond those already in place, but would allow the existing restrictions to be enforced more effectively. A grace period would also have allowed drivers to pick up and drop off on the red route without receiving a fine.
The wider Bury Park proposals are not being abandoned.
They include restrictions on parking on pavements, better visibility around pedestrian crossings, longer loading bay hours from 7pm to 10am and an increase in the maximum loading bay stay from 30 to 45 minutes.
Disabled parking bay stays would also increase from 60 to 90 minutes.
The council is also continuing to examine parking provision, including 120 additional public spaces at Luton Town Football Club’s Hazelbury Crescent car park, available every day apart from match days and the day before a match.
A separate feasibility study examined parking at 122-124 Leagrave Road.
Officers found that a surface car park could provide up to 37 spaces at an estimated cost of around £500,000, while a three-storey car park could provide up to 49 spaces at an estimated £1.7m.
Those figures do not include the cost of acquiring or leasing the land and the site could also have contamination issues because of its current and former use as a garage repair site.
A parking survey found seven car parks within a 10-minute walk of the centre of Bury Park High Street.
Most had moderate to high occupancy, although Sainsbury’s car park was found to have substantial spare capacity. The council is in discussions with Sainsbury’s about improving signage because the current arrangement is poorly signposted.
The council is also exploring whether air quality in Bury Park could be improved by increasing the use of low-emission buses.
It says Arriva, Centrebus and Grant Palmer have all invested in new Euro 6 low-emission buses, while Arriva, which operates around 80 per cent of Luton services, has acquired land next to its depot for electric charging infrastructure.
The council says it will explore with Arriva the feasibility of only operating low-emission vehicles in Bury Park.
However, the £700,000 enforcement estimate comes with another financial consideration.
The report says greater enforcement could reduce the number of parking contraventions and therefore the income generated by penalty charge notices. It warns that no additional or ongoing financial commitments should be made until the full financial implications and a sustainable funding source have been established.
The council says Bury Park’s congestion, road safety and parking problems have been raised by residents and stakeholders for many years.
The proposed measures are intended to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists, reduce congestion and make the area more accessible, particularly for vulnerable residents.
Tonight’s Executive meeting will therefore provide the first clear indication of whether the new administration intends to proceed with the controversial red route or pursue increased enforcement of existing restrictions instead, with an independent economic assessment now set to examine the costs and benefits of both approaches.
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