Where are CPZ’s being proposed?

There are currently 6 CPZ’s under consultation – they are:

Residential CPZ’s

• Bounds Green / Bowes Park proposed CPZ
• Fortis Green proposed CPZ
• Harringay Station proposed CPZ
• Hornsey Station proposed CPZ

Stop and Shop pay and display CPZ’s

• Crouch End proposed Stop and Shop scheme
• Muswell Hill proposed Stop and Shop scheme

What is the purpose of a CPZ?

Depends on where you are looking and who you ask.

What is the stated aim for CPZ, in the consultation leaflets?

The consultation leaflets, we should all have had through our door, starts by setting out the reasons why a CPZ is needed. It says:

“In this document, Haringey Council is asking for your views on the introduction of a Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ) to the Harringay Station area. The aim of a CPZ is to discourage all day commuter parking by prioritising parking for residents and local businesses. It will also provide
better traffic management by reducing illegal and obstructive parking.

Following representations from residents in the Harringay Station area, Haringey Council is considering the possible introduction of a Controlled Parking Zone to discourage all day commuter parking by prioritising parking for residents and short stay visitors to the area. Parking beat surveys have also indicated parking pressures due to non-resident commuter parking.”

(Same text appears in all Haringey’s CPZ consultation leaflets)

Let us look at this statement: 

“The aim of a CPZ is to discourage all day commuter parking” the leaflet states. However people and traders who live and operate next door to both Harringay St and Hornsey St are adamant there is no such problem! and that their roads are empty of cars during the day time with plenty of space to freely park.
See Pictures on the right ->

The leaflet goes on saying “Following representations from residents in the Harringay Station area” implying Haringey are responding to public demand, listening to us…
See Pictures on the right ->

”Parking beat surveys have also indicated parking pressures due to non-resident commuter parking.” A surveying team was spotted on Uplands Rd and Ridge Rd only today (4th July). If the survey is done now after printing the leaflets and after distributing them, Could Haringey have had this information prior to printing the leaflets?

What is the stated aim for CPZ on the Haringey’s website

However on Haringey’s website, the true reasons are expressed. CPZ’s have nothing to do with a solution to parking problems. It aims to create them!
http://www.haringey.gov.uk
The CPZ page explains:

“ Why do we need Controlled Parking Zones in Haringey?

Haringey is a borough with high pollution and areas suffering from excessive traffic congestion. As part of a London-wide transport strategy, Haringey has committed to reducing car use in the borough and so reduce pollution, accidents, and delays to buses.

Controlled parking zones (CPZ’s) were first introduced in Haringey in 1994 to reduce traffic congestion and promote other forms of transport rather than privately owned vehicles. CPZ’s reduce the total amount of parking available.  If a road is laid out with yellow lines and parking bays, there are fewer opportunities to park illegally.  The total number of parking spaces is reduced.

The decision to go ahead with a controlled parking zone follows a consultation with residents and businesses whose views determine what roads are in the zone and how long the parking controls last.”

So it seems that the true aim of the CPZ scheme is to make you give up your car by creating parking problems and making it too expensive to have a car through payments for residents and visitors permits, rather then the stated aim in the consultation documents, which pretends it is to solve any parking problem, which clearly doesn’t exist by and large!
See Pictures on the right ->

The last paragraph really tells it all – the decision to have it or not is not an option! Consultation is a mere formality pretending to give us some limited choices…

Some more CPZ facts we are not told about

from http://www.cpz.org.uk

Does a CPZ guarantee a parking space? No

If I am not able to park, can I get a refund for my permit? No

What should I do if there is no space in my parking zone? If you are surrounded by other parking zones, you will need to wait for a space to become free in your zone, or if other people are also waiting, take your car to a municipal car park to avoid a flash point. If you live close to an uncontrolled zone, you can park your car there, but by doing that, you may be fuelling the spread of CPZs.

The consultation document says CPZs help alleviate parking problems. Is this so? No! CPZs reduce the total amount of parking available. If a road is laid out with yellow lines and parking bays, there are fewer opportunities to park legally. The total amount of parking space is reduced. Visitors, carpet layers, plumbers, engineers, builders etc will need permits to visit, you must supply these, or they risk being ticketed, clamped, towed away. Each permit has to be purchased and numbers are limited, and you will still have the problems you had before.

Will a CPZ give me a reserved parking space? A CPZ does not give you a reserved space. Anyone with a permit to park in your zone can park in the bay closest to your house.

Does a parking permit entitle me to park in my road? A parking permit gives you no more entitlement to park in your road than a road without permits.

If I have a parking permit for my area, can I park in other areas? No, you can’t. A parking permit will only be valid in your street or as far as your zone extends. For example, if you live on Inderwick Road, within the Harringay Station CPZ Zone you will not be able park on Inderwick Road beyond Weston Park as it then becomes Hornsey Station CPZ zone.

Can I transfer the permit to another car? No, you can’t. Permits are not transferable. They have the car registration number printed on them. If the numbers don’t match, you will get parking fines.

If I change my vehicle, will I need to re-apply for a permit? Yes. If you change your vehicle, you will need to re-apply for a permit. You will need to use visitor permits until the new permit comes through.

Don’t these CPZs overall make life difficult for residents in the borough? If you have enjoyed taking your family to the local railway station by car, visiting local shops using your car, driving to your friends, or receiving friends who have come to see you by car, then CPZs make life harder for residents. CPZs spread by setting one group of residents off against another. A form of divide and conquer.

In Lewisham Council Parking Consultation key decision Mayor and Cabinet 7th September 2005, part 1 : Paragraph 4.3:

“The mayor of London’s transport strategy (2001) provides a framework for traffic management and parking controls throughout Greater London . This guidance gives high priority to parking control initiatives that encourage a shift from the use of the car for personal travel to public transport, walking or cycling.”

It is therefore clear that controlled parking is officially considered a way of reducing parking opportunities and to discourage residents from owning and using cars. However, the council sell parking zones to residents as a cure for parking problems.

Many would consider this extremely misleading.

If the consultation was honest, it should say something like “We plan to introduce parking controls in a stepwise fashion across the borough to stop you and other residents owning and using cars, and to stop people visiting you in a car. Are you in favour of controlled parking in your street?

The Cost

Residential permits: The price of residential CPZ permits across London vary from as little as £25 to as much as £130 a year, with no concessionary rates. The introductory price of £25 will only last as long as the council is in the process of implementing Transport For London (TFL) Parking Control (PC) policy everywhere in the borough. They use it to incentives residents to accept it. Once the whole borough is covered by CPZ zones the price could go up by 4 times and more, as demonstrated by other London boroughs who reached a state of CPZ completion.

When Haringey decides to put CPZ’s permits price up, do you think you are going to consulted on it?

If you are undecided about the pro and cons of CPZ, before taking pen to consultation form please consider the TRUE long term cost of the CPZ residential and visitors permits – It is likely that prices could go up to about £130 a year per car. If you are a family with 2 cars you could be looking at £260 or more, (at some places in London, the cost of second car’s permits are significantly higher then the first.)

There is another reason why the price is low while CPZ’s are being introduced. Transport for London (TFL) which is responsible for the CPZ policy provides funds for local councils to implement the CPZ policy everywhere in London. To qualify councils applying for funds must show they do not have revenue surpluses from existing CPZ’s. Read it for yourself -> Borough Spending Plan, Submission Guidance, 2005/06 – 2007/08 (pdf) Page 62-67 Paragraph 19 -19.15

Visitor’s permits: The cost to park your own car is not the only cost. If you are a social animal with friends from outside your area, or you are dependent on people coming to see / care for you, you will have to provide your visitors with pre paid Visitor permits, to enable them to park near your home. Depending how often this takes place, at current prices you looking at a much greater cost then your own permit. Using your annual quota of visitor permits you are looking at up to £940 a year.

If you want to have a better idea of the true cost of your visitor’s permits, look at the last 12 month in your diary and add all your visitors up, before you decide – “Oh it’s not too bad, really…” – and remember this is likely to be only an ‘introductory’ price – it too could quadruple once CPZ’s are all over Haringey!

When someone is visiting you over the weekend regardless of whether they are staying for the whole duration or not you are going to use your weekend visitor permits. What happens when you run out of your weekend permits? You start using the 2 hour permits that you have left… What if your family visits for 3 days during the week? Would you use the 2 weeks permit? What happens when your 3 year old child is having a birthday party and you have 30 guests even if you have it in your community centre, it too is within the CPZ and have not been consulted!

Think about all of it before you say yes to the CPZ.

And let’s not talk about the fines…+£££££££££££££…

Current Cost of Residential and visitors permits in Haringey:

Price £25 for a twelve-month permit.
Please note there is no concessionary rate on the resident permits.

Visitors permits

Standard rate applies to residents aged between 18 and 60 years.

Standard rates

Concessionary rates

Concessionary rates apply to residents aged 60 years and above or residents who are registered disabled.

Proof of age or disability is required i.e.Pension or Allowance Book.

*A weekend permit is valid from midday on Friday until midday on Monday

**This permit is valid for one continuous two-week period, the period it covers will be written on the permit by Council staff.

The second phase of the consultation over the proposed CPZ is now under way. Residents in the Hornsey and Stroud Green area have started receiving consultation leaflets and are invited to respond by either completing the form part of the consultation leaflets or by writing to the council.

The new proposed zones (marked in yellow on the map below) are smaller then the proposed areas included in the first phase of consultation.(marked in blue tones on the map below)

The second phase of the CPZ consultation will end on 29 October 06.

Consultation leaflets

To download the CPZ consultation leaflet, which contained the response form and detailed maps click on the relevant link: Harringay Stations | Hornsey Stations | Bounds Green | Fortis Green

If you live within the newly defined zones, you should have got one of the above leaflets. If you didn’t please let us know.

Those living outside the new zones are not officially consulted in the second phase despite the well established fact that living on the boundary of any of the proposed zones you are likely to be effected by displaced parking especially of commercial vehicles.

Please feel free to let Haringey know your views! A list of your local councillors and executive members (who will make the final decision on this issue) is available from here. Or you can write your views on the revised scheme either by completing the tear-off section on page 5 of the leaflets above, or by letter to:
Haringey Council
Traffic and Road Safety Group
River Park House,1st Floor South
225 High Road, Wood Green
London N22 8HQ