Maidenhead & Windsor

Increasing the amount of legal on-road parking available to residents living in town centres is set to be the focus of a review by the Royal Windsor and Maidenhead Borough proposed for early next year.

Aimed to tie in with the introduction of decriminalised parking enforcement (DPE) – which will bring parking enforcement under the control of the Windsor and Maidenhead council instead of the police when it comes into effect on January 14 – the review will consider as many opportunities as possible to change double yellow lines to singles, shorten lines near junctions and create more parking for residents.

The matter will be presented to Cabinet on Thursday December 13 for approval.

Councillors were invited to identify roads in their wards where there was a potential for line changes, and they proposed a total of 62 sites throughout the borough, more than half in the terraced streets of central Windsor.

Cllr Colin Rayner, lead member for Windsor and Maidenhead highways, transport and environment, said: "Over the past few years there has been a steady rise in the number of cars parked overnight on double yellow lines. Currently the majority of central Windsor parking bays allow anyone to park after 6.30pm, which has resulted in many commuting residents returning home and finding that the only place to park is a double yellow line, often a long distance from their homes.

“The introduction of DPE provides the council with the opportunity to bring the situation back under control.

“Moving forward, priority will be given to residents in the evening, and visitors will have to park in car parks or on single yellow lines.

“We hope that by making parking in the majority of central Windsor bays resident-only in the evenings and weekends, residents will not have to park illegally. Resident visitor vouchers will still be accepted in the evening.

“While we need to ensure that cars are parked legally, safely and with consideration for other road users, we also fully appreciate the difficulty for residents of town centre terraced houses in finding a suitable place to park their car at night.

“This review will flag up areas where we can amend yellow lines to provide additional on-street parking.”

David Scott, head of Windsor and Maidenhead community services, said: “We will look at a number of methods of increasing the amount of legal on-street parking in our town centres, while ensuring safety isn’t compromised or other traffic issues created.”

These are:

· reducing the length of yellow lines at or near junctions to allow for more parking space
· converting double yellow lines to singles to provide residents with more parking space in the evening and at weekends while maintaining restrictions during the day
· in key areas, increasing the amount of parking available for the exclusive use of resident permit holders
· increasing the amount of off-peak residents-only parking by changing the balance in favour of residents in areas where they share with daytime pay and display areas
· increasing awareness of free use of off-street car parks for residents
· introducing resident-only parking areas at key times during commuter travelling times.

Many of the yellow lines on streets in the Windsor and Maidenhead borough were put in place as far back as the days of Berkshire County Council and the introduction of DPE provides an ideal opportunity to review their positioning. It will also enable the council to act against illegal parking on verges and footpaths where restrictions apply on the adjacent road.

The first phase of confirming the changes identified will be undertaken before January 14, so that following the introduction of DPE the legally required advertising process can be started with a view to making the changes by March 3. Second and third phases would follow once the impact of the first was assessed.

Free evening parking for residents
Resident parking permit holders who cannot find a parking space near their home in the evening can take advantage of free parking in one of the Royal Windsor and Maidenhead Borough’s convenient car parks in Windsor and Maidenhead.

Use free evening parking with a resident’s yellow Advantage Card at the following car parks:
Maidenhead: Stafferton Way, Grove Road, West Street and the Town Hall (Park Street entrance)
Windsor: Victoria Street, East Berkshire College, Alma Road, Alexandra Gardens, King Edward VII (Datchet Road), Romney Lock and York House (Sheet Street).
(In Windsor free evening parking in the above car parks is also available with a resident’s parking permit.)
See car park tariff boards for details.

The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead