Redbridge Council is proposing a new parking strategy for the whole of the borough. Redbridge is a large borough consisting of many and varied locales, and we’re interested in the effect this plan might have in our part of it.
Under the proposed scheme parking meters would be installed along Wanstead High Street, charging for parking seven days a week between 7am and 7pm (an extension of parking restrictions from the present one or two hours). Furthermore, residents would be charged to park their cars outside their own homes.
Should this strategy go ahead, some potential concerns are that residents would consider paving over their front gardens so they can park there for no charge which would have a harmful ecological effect. Local traders could also lose business if people feel priced out of parking and shopping in Wanstead. The cost of introducing and policing the proposal could mitigate the possible benefits.
The public are told that this plan is being considered to deal with the 2012 Olympics, so presumably there should be assurances that any plans put in place will be removed once the Olympics are over.
At a recent Area 1 committee meeting, local councillors were made aware of the strength of local feeling over this issue. A group in Grosvenor Road who oppose the plans have started a petition.
The Counties Residents’ Association (CRA) has prompted Redbridge Council to reveal that it has asked a third-party company to come up with some options for the parking strategy. Once the council has decided which of these to use, the scheme will have to go to a three-month consultation with local residents, so it’s far from a done deal.
The Wanstead Society and the CRA will be keeping an eye on how this story develops.