Lambeth council has removed the performance-related profit element of its contract with Control Plus.

icSouthlondon - Playing fair with parking: "Playing fair with parking

Oct 13 2006

By Chief Reporter Greg Truscott


TRAFFIC wardens in a borough infamous for its controversial parking enforcement will no longer have to dole out a minimum number of tickets per shift.

Lambeth council has removed the performance-related profit element of its contract with Control Plus.

Previously, wardens had to issue a total of at least 4,000 tickets a week to maximise the company's profits.

Critics said it was this element that led to a high number of dodgy tickets being issued.

According to figures released in August, Lambeth issued 255,066 fines between April 2005 and March 2006. Neighbouring Southwark issued 135,000 and Lewisham 63,000."
But this week, Labour-run Lambeth announced it was to bring an end to the incentives system that had seen wardens too quick to dole out penalty charge notices (PCNs).

From November,Control Plus will not profit from reaching ticket targets but will instead be monitored and rewarded for treating motorists fairly.

Lambeth's cabinet member for environment, Councillor Lib Peck, said: 'For too long, the parking policy in Lambeth has not offered fairness to residents.

'It was a key pledge of this administration to make parking in Lambeth fairer for local people and we are delivering on that promise.

'This is a fresh start on parking policy. We have listened to residents who told us they were unhappy with the old system where too often parking attendants were overzealous, and we are putting in place a parking policy that is firm but fair.'

Cllr Peck said traffic wardens would be monitored to ensure they behaved properly and that 'mystery shoppers' would be used to test the parking enforcement service.

Traffic wardens will also be measured on the number of individual streets they visit so that they do not loiter in easy-to-ticket areas.

The contract with Control Plus is to be carefully monitored to ensure it provides a fair service and will be fully reassessed when it comes up for renewal in 2008.

Lambeth's deputy cabinet member for parking and transport, Cllr Nigel Haselden, said: 'We will keep a close eye on the contract to make sure it is working for residents.'"