Parking: The Next Stage
From our Surrey County Councillor
The next stage of the Parking Proposals has arrived. Plans have been drawn up by SCC and are to be made available for inspection and discussion. They will be on display in the library from the second week of December to 18 January 2008. On Tuesday 11 December from 12-8pm and Saturday 12 January 10am - 4pm there will be an SCC officer exhibiting the plans who can explain their rationale, note comments and answer questions. I also expect to be in attendance during these sessions.
The proposals are the result of the two questionnaires sent to local households and have taken into account comments from the Parking Enforcement Officers at Elmbridge together with views of the SCC Transportation Dept. A majority of villagers supported a system of permits and short-stay places in the area of the High Street, and a mix of free parking bays and 'curfew' in the area of the Station.
There is a need to consider the following issues:
- The enforcement issue is important as the monitoring of short term parking for shoppers in the High Street needs to be as simple as possible and workable. In order to make enforcement possible, a visiting warden needs to be able to tell when a car commenced parking. Some system of ticketing will be recommended.
- Permits will be necessary for the residents of High Street, Ashley Road, Church Walk (Station Road End) and some for the Island. The parking bays would be zoned. Permits will be available for essential operational business vehicles in the High Street.
- Road junctions where parking has caused obstruction will have double yellow lines to free up access and avoid congestion. 'Curfew parking' zones will have single yellow lines and bays for free parking will be marked out. Parking bays along Watts Road and other congestion points will be staggered to facilitate passing.
- Yellow lines would be narrow, of "Conservation Area Standard" and there are prospects of getting that implemented around the station too (which is not a Conservation Area).
- There will be some increase in the amount of street furniture albeit minimised as far as possible.
I would encourage as many as possible to examine the proposals and put your views and questions to the SCC officer attending, so that the final plans to be drawn up will be acceptable to a majority of residents and other users of the village. It is these final plans that will be progressed through a legal consultation before implementation.
Peter Hickman