Parents in York are being encouraged to pledge their support for a new scheme aimed at tackling inappropriate and illegal parking around schools.
City of York Council says that many schools in the city suffer from inconsiderate parking around the school entrance and in nearby streets, and as a result children’s safety is being put at risk.
With the support of schools and North Yorkshire Police, City of York Council has launched the Parents’ Parking Promise.
The promise encourages parents and carers to park responsibly around schools or consider using other modes of transport such as walking, cycling or bus journeys to help children travel to and from school safely.
The promise asks everyone that signs up to not park on zig zag or double yellow lines or on pavements, but instead to park carefully and considerately or consider walking or cycling to schools.
Those who sign up to the scheme receive a car badge, unique to their children’s school, to demonstrate their commitment to parking responsibly and further strengthen support for the scheme.
York City Council also says that “to support the scheme and in response to concerns expressed by many head teachers, a road safety camera car will operate from March 2014 to enforce parking restrictions outside schools”.
The council says that this method has proved successful in other authorities in deterring illegal parking and thereby increasing safety around schools.
Councillor Janet Looker said:“Over the past 20 years the percentage of children travelling to school by car nationally has doubled. In York around 30% of primary and 10% of secondary school children are now driven to school, the majority of these journeys are less than one mile.
“Working with schools and parents we hope to further highlight that there are other options available than driving to school, but if parents choose this option then we want to encourage them to do this safely and join this scheme to make children feel safer on their way to and from school.”
Deputy chief constable Tim Madgwick, of North Yorkshire Police, said: “It is really important that the roads around schools are as safe as possible and hopefully this campaign will prompt people to be more considerate and bear the safety of children in mind.
“It’s great that the children are getting involved in promoting the scheme and I would encourage as many people as possible to take part, back the campaign and help make our children safer.”
Where are all these plentiful ‘safe’ parking places around schools? In Kent they will not allow for safe parking in even new schools, as they want to encourage walking, cycling. These councillors want to get out in the real world! Explain how they expect to get kids to school miles from their homes and perhaps at two different schools, and all before 9.00am.
Terry Hudson, Kent
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Parents parking all over the place causing passing traffic to crawl past seems to me to follow the 20s plenty ethos at the times it is needed. Clear the road at the entrance then passing traffic goes faster and any incident is liable to be more severe due to higher speed. It has been like this for years. Do we bang on about this all the time? Yes, but what are the statistics for child pedestrian injuries within 50 meters of a school entrance during the hour around opening and closing times. Probably not that high thank goodness.
Peter Westminster
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I hsve invariably found that however cynical I become I have been more than justified by the truth when it evenually emerges. Cynics of the world unite – it’s the naysayers who bring about change for the better!
Idris Francis Fight Back with Facts Petersfield
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I have recently learnt that Slough has just bought 2 of these enforcement camera cars and I know that Slough is in the process of implementing even more severe restrictions on where people can park. I read in the paper that councils with these enforcement camera cars made on average 9 times the income from parking enforcement than councils without them. Furthermore, the councils with enforcement camera cars were making an average of over £49 per household per year.
But I am told this does not influence the use of enforcement camera cars because the reason now is to improve the safety of children near schools. Let’s hope they achieve their stated purpose.
Dave Finney, Slough
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I agree with Hugh and don’t disbelieve Dave on this one.
My local school is on a main route into town and has traffic lights and pedestrian crossings within a few hundred yards either side. Traffic is stopped and backs up. At school coming and going time its a danger just waiting for a victim. And yet there is a swimming pool and sports hall next door some 50 yards away and a massive car park that is totally empty at those times but do the school encourage drivers to pull in and drop of or pick up their kids? No they do not.
Drivers stop on the zig zags outside the school and on approaches to pedestrian crossings and on the apex of corners and within 32 ft of junctions and even pull onto the pavement where there are double yellow lines. All this with no police presence.
bob craven Lancs
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Dave:
Too cynical…cars parked badly around schools blighting local residents’ lives every morning and afternoon in term-time and causing hazards is not a figment of anyone’s imagination – it’s a nationwide problem. It seems a Council are doing something about it and whether it’s ultimately backed up by enforcement on foot, remotely via a mobile camera or a clown on a uni-cycle is not really the point.
Hugh Jones, Cheshire
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I was told the real story was that York Council have bought a parking enforcement camera car but were worried there might be opposition so they called it a “road safety camera car” and started the above PR exercise to try to distract attention. The parking promise seems like a good idea but will York residents fall for that cover story?
Dave Finney, Slough
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