Manchester Liberal Democrats are calling for an inquiry after it was revealed that the Council issued nearly 4,100 parking tickets in the last two years in a 40-space car-park in the city due to unclear signage.
The Council initially refused to change the signs, at Thurloe Street car-park in Rusholme, but have finally agreed to do so following complaints from Rusholme Liberal Democrat Councillor Paul Shannon.
Visitors from as far afield as Wolverhampton and Surrey had complained about the unclear ticketing signs after being fined during their visit to Rusholme's famous curry restaurants, and Councillor Shannon took up a number of their cases.
Although the signs suggest charging applies only between 8am and 6pm, an asterix and tiny small print reveal that motorists must actually pay between 6pm and 8am too, though on a different rate. Due to the widespread confusion, Manchester's Parking bosses in two years issued 4,064 tickets to motorists for not displaying a "pay & display ticket". The fines could bring between £100,000 & £1/4 million into Council coffers, depending on appeals and prompt-payment discounts.
Councillor Paul Shannon said today:
"This is scandalous. Why did the Council not investigate this staggering rate of parking fines in such a small car park? Why did they reject my initial complaint and refuse to change the parking tariff sign, when there was so clearly a problem? It looks like a cynical exercise in fleecing the motorist."
An internal Council e-mail even shows one Parking official asking her boss if Councillor Shannon would be asking for refunds following the decision to amend the signage!
Councillor Shannon continued:
"I am calling on the City Council to review each case and declare an amnesty where appropriate. These tickets have been unjustly issued and should be looked at again."
"Instead of cynically targetting motorists with unclear signs in a small car park, the Council should be tackling motorists parked on pavements, bus bays and cycle lanes throughout Rusholme, which is notorious for traffic gridlock and congestion."
Manchester's Liberal Democrat Opposition Leader Councillor Simon Ashley added:
"Manchester's Liberal Democrats want parking enforcement we can trust. Sadly the Council's actions in this case will only damage Manchester's reputation. Residents cannot have confidence in Manchester's Labour Council when its actions bring the whole parking system into disrepute. We are calling for a full inquiry into how this has happened."
End...
Notes to Editors:
NCP Thurloe Street, Rusholme, is a small 40-space car-park in the centre of Rusholme.
Councillor Paul Shannon is a Liberal Democrat Councillor representing Rusholme. He can be contacted on 0161 234 3002 for further information.
Manchester's much-criticised Parking service was slammed in the most recent Annual Report from the National Parking Adjudicators (November 2004). Manchester had the most parking ticket appeals (806) in the whole country, meaning Manchester's motorists are five times more likely to appeal parking tickets than in Liberal Democrat-controlled Liverpool.
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