Parking management undertaken by councils is an essential public service. New research commissioned by London Councils has found that parking management benefits London’s economy while helping to deal with traffic, improve air quality and ensure better road safety.
London Councils commissioned Integrated Transport Planning (ITP) to research public parking management in London, which is the responsibility of London boroughs, by evaluating the cumulative impact of parking measures such as bays, yellow lines and parking zones.
The report sums up the value parking services add to the capital, which it estimates at £3.58 billion per year. It also assesses the cost-benefit ratio of parking management, which stands at 10:1 – for every pound spent on parking measures, London benefits tenfold.
Around 9.6 million trips are made in London by car, taxi or private hire vehicle each day. At the beginning and end of these 9.6 million journeys, motorists must use some form of parking service. However, the reasearch shows that motorists are not the only people who benefit from boroughs’ parking management – it has wider benefits for all Londoners.
The study defines eight benefits of parking management:
- Reducing congestion;
- Improving road safety;
- Improving air quality;
- Ensuring good access and accessibility;
- Promoting the local economy;
- Maximising the productive use of the land resource;
- Promoting health and wellbeing through travel choice; and
- Providing funding for parking and wider transport scheme improvements, including the Freedom Pass concessionary travel scheme
