Wycombe Council in Embarrassing Climbdown

bargepole

Wycombe District Council have, for the past two and a half years, been operating their off-street car parks as if they were private car parks, and have now been forced to backtrack and revert to the statutory pay-and-display regime.

Story here: http://www.bucksfreepress.co.uk/news/15022494.Council_forced_to_change_parking_payment_system_to_pay_and_display/

In March 2014, they took the decision to take their off-street car parks out of statutory control (Traffic Management Act 2004), and install ANPR to issue PCNs under ‘contract and trespass’ law.

The Dept. for Transport told them they couldn’t do this, they had to use the legislation that was specifically provided for local authorities.

The DVLA were then told to stop supplying them with keeper data, which they did in July 2014 up until now. Apparently there are tens of thousands of non-payers over the last couple of years, which they can never chase for unpaid charges.

Certain ‘concerned council tax payers’ made formal complaints to the Council and the District Auditor about all this, but they have been in denial, and tried to get a Judicial Review heard in the High Court, but that hasn’t gone anywhere.

Now the DCLG has confirmed the previous ruling from the DfT, that councils can’t use ANPR for parking enforcement, and WDC have given up the fight. But there’s still the issue of the £1.4m they spent on all the equipment, and feet will be held to the flames over that.

Johno100

A quick Google seems to indicate that Wycombe District Council are not alone in doing away with a P & D and introducing ANPR.

Gloucester

http://www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk/8203-parking-will-never-be-the-same-again-in-gloucester-as-pay-and-display-is-cosigned-to-history/story-29766668-detail/story.html

Cheltenham

https://www.cheltenham.gov.uk/homepage/167/car_parks_with_automatic_numberplate_recognition

Canterbury

https://www.canterbury.gov.uk/news/2016/april/ticketless-parking-comes-to-the-district/

Or is the issue only if they use it for enforcement purposes not just as a different payment method?

peter_the_piper

If its like Heathrow, where they print the number on a ticket given at the barrier and the payment machine tells the exit barrier to lift then there should be no problem IMHO. If enforcement, like Wycombe, then they would also be in the mire

fisherjim

This has been a disaster in Wycombe and the surrounding area since introduction, especially with older folks that have just been confused from day one.
There is also the loss from vandalised machines, and cash stolen from them, a typical poorly thought out scheme, if they had just made all the parking free they would probably have lost less money.

The_Slithy_Tove

Johno100 wrote: »

A quick Google seems to indicate that Wycombe District Council are not alone in doing away with a P & D and introducing ANPR.

But it's not the using ANPR that did for Wycombe (though we all know the reliability issues it has). It's the fact that they tried to switch it all over to a contractural model rather then the usual council enforcement under the various traffic Acts.

Half_way

I wonder if the council could be in breach of the DPA as they, or their agents didn't have just cause to access RK data on non relevant land

pappa_golf

no agents involved , they bought , installed and operated the ANPR settup

non relevant land?

the land was relivent for council operation , but they broke legislation (using ANPR)

prjohnsonnn10

Bargepole , the fact that they have been using ANPR isnt the issue though is it? They could use (and could continue to use) ANPR providing the collection regime was as before ie the legitimate publicly owned Council parking 'fines'........the problem as you say was that they tried to revert to a pseudo private ownership regime.

So can they continue to use ANPR do you think if they change the regime back as i see that The Swan and Easton St are staying with ANPR?

Coupon-mad

Councils can't use ANPR in car parks at all though. Not even to gather data to collect penalty charges.

Similar issue in Horsham, who went very very quiet after they got a formal complaint:

http://forums.pepipoo.com/index.php?showtopic=106734

I think it's time to get my friend to write to Horsham again now.