Richard Wilson

Great news – a long running campaign by local residents and councillors for a review of the Finsbury Park Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ) is finally being acted on by the Council, who have at last agreed to put this in their 2010/11 work plan.  The review would include a parking consultation with residents who live outside the CPZ who are badly affected by displacement parking, as well as residents inside the Zone.  Last year we did a survey of residents in streets outside the Zone which got over 300 responses, and presented the results to the Council.  79% said parking had got worse and 61% said they now wanted the CPZ extended, and residents on some roads have put together petitions to demand action.
 
This is also great news for residents who live inside the existing CPZ who regularly complain about the rules, hours and enforcement of the parking controls.  It will also help residents who are angry about the boundary of the CPZ, with anomolies like the Oakfield Road bridge being included in the CPZ when there are no residents living on it.  Labour councillors have repeatedly promised reviews over the last 4 years, but these pledges have always been broken. 
 
The battle now is to hold the Council to this promise and to make sure the consultation is promptly and properly conducted, and is fair and considers all options.  As councillors our job is to make sure all views are heard, whether anti- or pro-CPZ.  Obviously we remain absolutely adamant that CPZs should purely be about helping solve residents parking problems, and not about raising money for the Council.  We will scrutinise any proposals to brought forward by the Council to ensure they stick to this principle.
 
Yesterday, along with councillor Lyn Weber from Crouch End ward, I met with the council officers in charge of parking to press for this review to  go ahead as soon as possible.