Please support CRAP’s campaign for an IMMEDIATE review of traffic and car parking throughout Powys?
There will be many key issues facing you in your bid to be elected, please see below details of the CRAP campaign which seeks your support.
CRAP (the Campaign for a Realistic Approach to Parking) is asking all Powys County Council candidates to support an “immediate review of Parking Policy, traffic management and on and off-street parking in consultation with both businesses and residents across the whole of Powys”. * As per the Powys County Council motion carried on 14th July 2011)
CRAP is a single issue, non-political popular campaign, started in Hay-on-Wye in reaction to the damaging effects of Powys County Council taking over Civil Parking Enforcement (CPE) from Dyfed Powys Police in April 2011.
CRAP believes CPE as presently structured is bad for Powys, it is dissuading people from shopping locally, discouraging visitors and tourists, is costing visitors and residents dearly in unfair penalty charges is destroying local communities and makes bad business sense.
CRAP, after six months public consultation has produced proposals for a review of traffic flow and parking in Hay-on-Wye, which at a meeting with Powys County Council on 12th October 2011, was agreed could be used as a “blueprint for a prospective countywide policy”.
CRAP enjoys wide public support and the encouragement of chambers of trade, town councils and politicians from all parties including Roger Williams MP, Kirsty Williams AM as well as past councillors and communities throughout Powys including Machynlleth, Presteigne, Brecon and Talgarth.
CRAP has determined that the (Prohibition and Restriction of Waiting and Loading and Parking Places) (Civil Enforcement and Consolidation) Order 2011 through which Powys assumed CPE powers, calls for the issue of Residents’ Parking Permits and exemption certificates yet none have been issued.
CRAP understands the following Welsh authorities have already introduced Residents’ Parking Zones and provide Residents Parking Permits to qualifying persons.:
Blaenau Gwent: Bridgend: Caerphilly: Cardiff: Carmarthenshire: Conwy: Denbighshire: Gwynedd: Merthyr Tydfil: Monmouthshire: Neath Port Talbot: Newport: Pembrokeshire: Rhondda: Swansea: Vale of Glamorgan: Wrexham.
CRAP believes that Powys should to do the same.
CRAP started crap-powys.blogspot.com in May 2011. For full details of our campaign so far (see 9th April entries ‘CRAP Background and the Story So Far’ & ‘CRAP Highlights of our blog’). For details of the proposals presented to Powys County Council (see 11th September entries ‘Hurrah! The Final Proposals’ & ‘TEXT OF THE FINAL PROPOSALS’)
CRAP has registered two Freedom of Information requests (see 24th March entries ‘First Freedom of Information Request’ & ‘Second Freedom of Information Request’) in order to find out the actual costs and income derived from the first year of CPE. A response has been promised by April 25th and will be published on our blog.
The history of Powys County Council’s adoption of Civil parking Enforcement has been one of confusion, obduracy, misinformation and broken promises.
March 2011 we were promised a “review will generally commence in April 2012”
No review has been undertaken or is planned for this month.
April 1st 2011 Powys County Council took over Civil Parking Enforcement to:
Improve Safety: Reduce the misuse of disabled parking bays: Improve conditions for all road-users, particularly pedestrians and disabled people: Reduce parking problems, especially around schools and in residential areas: Improve public transport reliability and journey times.
CRAP has asked Councillor Geraint Hopkins, Portfolio Holder for Traffic and Parking whether these aims have been achieved. No response has been received.July 11th 2011 as a result of public and political pressure the motion “From September 2011 this Council will start to work on the feasibility of a residents' parking policy…” was carried at a full Powys County Council meeting.
Councillor Geraint Hopkins confirmed that no work started in September 2011
11th October 2011 CRAP's parking proposals were presented to Councillor Geraint Hopkins (Powys County Council Cabinet Member and Portfolio Holder Environment and Regulation, responsible for Traffic and Parking) who promised to “respond to the campaign’s proposals in detail by the beginning of December.”
No response was received by the promised date.
January 2012 Councillor Gareth Ratcliffe was told by Councillor Geraint Hopkins that he “would be unable to respond … by the promised date, but instead would come back … in January.”
No response was received by the promised date.
29th January 2012 in an email to CRAP, Councillor Geraint Hopkins told us “Your proposals …. are forming the basis of the review. Unfortunately due to lack of resource this is not progressing as quickly as I would have liked and I haven't any money in my budget to bring in any outside help. I will contact you again when I have firm dates for various aspects of the review.”
No further news about this review has been made public.
16th March 2012 The following email was received from Councillor Geraint Hopkins and addressed to CRAP. "I have today received in very rough draft form … a policy for taking car parking management forward. Obviously this isn't going to be considered during the lifetime of this Council, so it will be the responsibility of the new administration to implement if they see fit.”
A request for details of the preliminary review has been ignored
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Thank you - PLEASE COMPLETE AND RETURN by 25th April to:
The Campaign for a Realistic Approach to Parking,
7 Bear Street,
Hay-on-Wye,
HR3 5AN
or email us on NH4@hotmail.co.uk. or crap-powys@mail.com
Please delete as appropriate:
I support an IMMEDIATE review of traffic and car parking throughout Powys
I do not support an IMMEDIATE review of traffic and car parking throughout Powys
NAME: ELECTORAL DIVISION
All candidates’ responses (and details of non-respondents) will be publicised on our blog (crap-powys.blogspot.com) and distributed as widely as possible.
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