Figures show area continues to attract a disproportionate number of fines

A report on parking enforcement in Hounslow shows that the Chiswick area continues attract a disproportionate level of penalty charge notices (PCNs) for parking and other traffic violations. These figures will fuel further accusations that the Chiswick area is used as a ‘cash cow’ for the rest of the borough.

Over half the tickets issued by parking attendants are in the W4 area as are the top two roads for the issuance of PCNs by CCTV and there are more bus lane fines on Chiswick High Road than in the rest of the borough put together.

The figures have emerged in the Parking and Traffic Enforcement Annual Report for the 2017 financial year which has recently been placed on the Council’s web site.

Six of the top ten locations for tickets given by parking attendants are in the Chiswick area and make up 55% of those issued. Additionally 3 of the 4 places outside Chiswick in the top ten where tickets are issued are car parks.

Source: Hounslow Council

Turnham Green Terrace remains the road in the borough with the highest number of PCNs enforced by CCTV with 1485. A significant number of those are believed to be for people pausing to drop off passengers near Turnham Green Station. This actually represents a fall from the previous year when over 2,000 such fines were issued. The second highest number of PCNs from this source is for Chiswick High Road with 1160.

Source: Hounslow Council

During the year there were 5050 fines issued on Chiswick High Road for bus lane violations, more than those given for all of the rest of the borough combined. This is a fall from the previous year but the main reason for the sharp decline in bus lane fines issued is a reduction in the number given at Staines Road, Hounslow, which more than halved. The number in the report does not include bus lane fines on Chiswick High Road issued on the section south of Chiswick Roundabout which is controlled by Transport for London.

Source: Hounslow Council

Hounslow Borough increased the number of PCNs issued by 15% to 121,202 compared to a 10% increase across the whole of London. Local parking enforcement PCNs only increased by 3% to 81,281 and bus lane PCNs fell by 47.8% to 8,123. The biggest increase in the year was in Moving Traffic enforcement PCNS which soared by 162% to 31,798. These are mainly used to enforce banned turns and failure to drive in the direction indication by arrows. Moving Traffic enforcement appears to be relatively low in Chiswick and over a third of the PCNs issued were for a junction in Lionel Road North where the council say motorists are failing to pass a pedestrian refuge on the correct side. There are just two spots in Chiswick where a significant number of moving traffic violations are fined. They are at the junctions of Ennismore Avenue and Prebend Gardens with Chiswick High Road presumably for entering a junction box and illegal right turns respectively.

Source: Hounslow Council

The Council appears to have ramped up the use of Mobile Traffic Enforcement to compensate for the loss of revenue which resulted from the banned of the use of CCTV to levy parking fines as well as tighter rules as to how quickly an enforcement officer could issue a fine. This led to a sharp fall in PCNs issued in the 2016 financial year. The increase seen in the latest year has not brought the number of PCNs back to peak levels.

For the 2017 financial year parking income for Hounslow Council was over £14million including PCNs, permits and car park charges. PCNs represented £6mn of the total. After costs the Council made a net surplus of £8.8mn which went to finance the cost of concessionary fares such as the Freedom Pass and Blue Badges.

March 17, 2018