Taxpayers' Funds Proposed To Be Wasted On Unwanted & Ineffective Parking Scheme

[Allison R 4]

The Park Hill Parking scheme, which extends to most of the Norfolk Park neighbourhood as well as parts of Arbourthorne & Manor Castle, proposes to make our residential streets look like parking lots (with pay-and-display meters & yellow lines painted everywhere to delineate parking bays and to block people from parking across their own driveways). Residents will have to pay for permits to park in their own street, but will not be guaranteed a spot. Carers, visitors and tradespeople will have to do pay-and-display when they visit.  It says in the proposal, that they are planning to implement the same type of plan in other parts of Sheffield,
 

Most of our area’s residents have no problem whatsoever with parking and are strongly opposed to the scheme.  For the few residents who would like a parking scheme (concentrated in just a few of the 65 roads to be included), the proposed scheme won’t solve their parking problems - what might would be to simply have permit only parking.
 

Someone in our group received a response from the Council that the cost for establishing this would be £600k (about £9200 per road for some yellow lines to be painted and meters to be installed?!?).  We feel this money could be put to much better use!

 

We are collecting signatures on a petition opposing the proposal that we will present to the Council on June 1st.  We hope you’ll sign!

https://democracy.sheffield.gov.uk/mgEPetitionDisplay.aspx?ID=10254&RPID=8013839&HPID=8013839

 

If you prefer to sign a paper petition, I have one. If anyone wants to print a petition and get signatures at work, church, mosque, etc., I am happy to email you one.

 

For more information about the scheme & maps:

https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/content/dam/sheffield/docs/parking/new-parking-zones/park-hill/park-hill-parking-zone-traffic-order.pdf

 

There was a fairly recent article about the proposed Park Hill Parking Scheme in the Star (it says the plan is going ahead in spite of our efforts to oppose it, but as far as we know, that’s not accurate - the Council has told us that if it’s made clear it’s not wanted, they will listen):

https://www.thestar.co.uk/news/politics/thousands-of-sheffield-residents-fight-council-plans-for-huge-parking-zone-3667938?fbclid=IwAR239Lb9MrkY8P8CljlDOgneEa3EXsnPloy8JtLhDbnDOEHRYtU4iO4Ek7M


 

 

[Resident 1,185]

They already look like parking lots on most days. 

[Annie Bynnol 612]

 

Are you asking residents of Park, Arbourthorne, Darnall, Manor Castle and Richmond only?

[Allison R 4]

I think it’s relevant to anyone who pays Council taxes in Sheffield.  These funds could be put to much better use than this.

[metalman 21]

Of course the council won't listen - they've already made up their minds it'll go ahead whatever the reception. We've seen it before in all the other permit parking zones that have been introduced.

[Allison R 4]

They assured us they would listen if we got enough signatures.  We’ve got 1800.  2500 means they have to give us a consultation.

[Martin C 81]

Obviously utopian, unrealistic, unachievable etc etc - but is there really a need for private cars in urban environments?  I'm 63  and have never ever driven or owned such a contraption.  None of my friends do either. Horrible things.

[Annie Bynnol 612]

21 hours ago, Allison R said:

I think it’s relevant to anyone who pays Council taxes in Sheffield.  These funds could be put to much better use than this.

So much for local politics.

Let the locals decide.

I hope the Council know how padded this petition is.

You are allowing he car owners from Dore, Nether Edge, Crookes etc, to override the needs of residents.

This should be a local issue not one decided by outsiders.

 

[Baron99 779]

21 hours ago, Allison R said:

I think it’s relevant to anyone who pays Council taxes in Sheffield.  These funds could be put to much better use than this.

Well you can only blame yourselves in those areas for re-electing Labour councillors time & time again. 

Edited May 23, 2022 by Baron99

[Allison R 4]

I don’t own a car either, Martin C. - I drive a bicycle, walk or use public transport.  I just think it’s a shame for such a large sum of money to be wasted on something the majority of our area’s residents don’t want that won’t solve problems but rather cause them.  

Annie Bynnol, over the past couple of months, we have collected over 1500 signatures by going door to door on the streets affected.  We have 20 volunteers doing this and in every street over 95% of residents are strongly against the plan.  We only recently - when we got the response from the Council about the £600k cost of implementing the plan - thought that taxpayers in other areas should be informed as we don’t see how it’s not relevant to them.  Additionally, it says in their proposal (see link above) will be installed in other areas - Nether Edge would be an obvious next as would Crooksmoor - so again, it would seem to me that this information is nor irrelevant to them and their signatures would not be “padding”.  At any rate, posting this here has “padded” the petition with the impressive figure of 10 signatures (which may actually have come from another afternoon of neighbourhood canvassing I did).
 

Baron 99, I don’t understand the point of his comment.

[Allison R 4]

A journalism student who signed the paper-based petition advised me to post here as his professor recommended this site.  But from what I can see, it’s just another place to invite digital abuse.  416 views and possibly 10 signatures [more likely (most of) these were from the canvassing I did on Saturday].  
 

What if no one had campaigned against the felling of the trees?  I am not saying putting yellow lines and marking meters in  residential streets is nearly as egregious as the tree debacle.  But would you want a parking meter in front of your house?  Do you want to see the residential streets of your beautiful city looking like parking lots? Isn’t it enough that so many of them have had their trees massacred?  When you walk on a street with no trees or little trees where once there were big beautiful ones, does it not make you a little sad to think what the road would’ve looked and felt like if the mature trees were there instead?  Do you honestly think it shouldn’t matter to us that our residential streets will have one more needless uglifying  Council scheme imposed on them?

 

And does the money involved really not matter to other Sheffield residents?  Is spending £600,000 of taxpayers’ funds on something local residents are against that won’t even solve the problem it’s supposed to address an effective use of taxpayers’ money?  That is almost £10,000 per street just to paint some yellow lines and install some parking meters. Does this seem like effective use of that money, or does it seem like another company’s got a “preferred contract” to be seriously overpaid to do something needless with YOUR tax money? Wouldn’t you rather see those funds be used for a more effective solution to the parking problem like providing better public transport, funding bicycle-encouraging programs, offering affordable  parking in the city centre.  Or simply used for other more worthy causes?  I don’t understand how that is not relevant to other Sheffield residents.

[Mr Bloke 1,445]

1 hour ago, Allison R said:

A journalism student who signed the paper-based petition advised me to post here as his professor recommended this site.  But from what I can see, it’s just another place to invite digital abuse.  416 views and possibly 10 signatures [more likely (most of) these were from the canvassing I did on Saturday].  
 

What if no one had campaigned against the felling of the trees?  I am not saying putting yellow lines and marking meters in  residential streets is nearly as egregious as the tree debacle.  But would you want a parking meter in front of your house?  Do you want to see the residential streets of your beautiful city looking like parking lots? Isn’t it enough that so many of them have had their trees massacred?  When you walk on a street with no trees or little trees where once there were big beautiful ones, does it not make you a little sad to think what the road would’ve looked and felt like if the mature trees were there instead?  Do you honestly think it shouldn’t matter to us that our residential streets will have one more needless uglifying  Council scheme imposed on them?

 

And does the money involved really not matter to other Sheffield residents?  Is spending £600,000 of taxpayers’ funds on something local residents are against that won’t even solve the problem it’s supposed to address an effective use of taxpayers’ money?  That is almost £10,000 per street just to paint some yellow lines and install some parking meters. Does this seem like effective use of that money, or does it seem like another company’s got a “preferred contract” to be seriously overpaid to do something needless with YOUR tax money? Wouldn’t you rather see those funds be used for a more effective solution to the parking problem like providing better public transport, funding bicycle-encouraging programs, offering affordable  parking in the city centre.  Or simply used for other more worthy causes?  I don’t understand how that is not relevant to other Sheffield residents.

Hmmm...

I'm not surprised you've had such little response from the people on here.

 

Lots of people (quite often journalism students ) seem to just create a new account on the forum in a desperate attempt to try to drum-up support for their own agenda and then disappear as quickly as they popped up.

 

And they wonder why no-one is interested in signing their petition?

 

If these people had contributed to the forum more (for example, by posting help and advice for others first) then maybe more people would be prepared to listen to them?

 

I'd guess that the majority of viewers you've had are 'getting on a bit', and most of us have seen the outcome of these 'public consultations' with the council before.

 

You seem to be young enough (or maybe just naive?) to still believe that your efforts will affect any decision SCC have already made.

 

No-one listens!

 

Or perhaps, more accurately, if you get your 'consultation' with the council it'll be with some 'office junior' who has absolutely no authority to affect 'council policy', but who'll give you the impression that they're listening intently.

 

They'll then return to their office and write a report for their 'manager'...
... who'll then file it in the nearest bin along with all the other 'consultation reports'.

 

They know best after all...
... but at least they can then say that the public was 'consulted'.

 

Anyway good luck with your petition and I hope you'll keep us all informed of your progress...
... but I won't be holding my breath!