I have written two emails to Katy Bourne, Sussex Police & Crime Commissioner, after reading reports in Rye News. I hope you will publish them.
Councillor Mary Smith
Rye
November 9, 2014
Dear Ms Bourne
I am forwarding to you my email of September 1, following a worrying incident when fire engines were blocked by parked vehicles in Rye. Both the Rye Observer and Rye News online newspaper have now reported yet another incident in which two fire appliances were delayed by illegally parked delivery vehicles. One passer-by has told of a delay of 15 minutes. Closely packed medieval buildings would appear to be extremely vulnerable to fire, putting the survival of an internationally renowned, historic site at risk, to say nothing of the lives and livelihoods of residents. I am, of course, aware that traffic management and enforcement is part of the remit both of the police and higher councils. What I would like to know is what you have done and are prepared to do to bring about a solution with the police and councils. I was most disappointed to read in Rye News online that as yet they have received no reply to their own enquiry to your office.
September 1, 2014
Dear Ms Bourne
The online newspaper for Rye (available at ryenews.org.uk), details a recent incident where fire engines were unable to access the historic citadel area of town because of obstructions by parked vehicles. Between Rother District Council’s unwillingness to institute civil enforcement and police unwillingness to take responsibility for what is often deemed to be merely parking infringement, a very dangerous situation has been created. Impasse. Somebody needs to take a sensible initiative before there is a fire in these medieval buildings that the emergency services cannot reach. With the town often full of visitors, as well as elderly residents in this area, the consequences could be horrible. As a town councillor there is a very limited amount that I can do, other than place an urgent item on tonight’s town council agenda and attempt to alert those with any authority to try to push for speedy solutions. Can you help to sort this out?
The reply from the commissioner’s office on September 5, 2014 follows:
Dear Councillor Smith
Thank you for your email to the Sussex Police & Crime Commissioner, Katy Bourne, who has asked me to respond on her behalf. Having consulted widely with the public prior to her election, Mrs Bourne understands the importance that the residents of Sussex place on road safety, which is a key feature in her Police & Crime Plan. The Commissioner also acknowledges that parking remains a constant challenge for many residents in Sussex. As you correctly point out in your email, the waiting and parking section of The Highway Code section 242 states that “you must not leave your vehicle or trailer in a dangerous position or where it causes any unnecessary obstruction of the road”. I can confirm that any allegation of obstruction would be dealt with on an individual basis and merit by local police officers and could be enforced through section 22 of the Road Traffic Act 1988.
As you already know, the introduction of the Road Traffic Act (1991) and the decriminalisation of parking offences means that the enforcement of parking on the roads and highways throughout most of Sussex is the responsibility of the local authority and Sussex Police continue to work in partnership with them to achieve this.
However, Wealden and Rother districts made the decision not to have parking decriminalised in their districts, primarily because of the associated costs; both in terms of set up and the ongoing running and management costs. The potential to deter shoppers from visiting the areas because of the increased parking charges was also a factor behind the decision not to decriminalise parking in these two districts. This is an issue that the various panels, forums and executive committees are looking into changing within Rother district.
As I am sure you can appreciate, effective parking enforcement is a full-time responsibility and covering this demand is not always the best use of limited police resources. However, I would like to reassure you that Sussex Police are exploring other solutions which include sponsorship of police community support officers through district councils, sharing “accredited” enforcement powers with the limited number of district council parking enforcement officers responsible for the pay and display car parks and through the education of offenders via a similar scheme to community speed watch which will utilise local volunteers to tackle the problem locally.
It is also worth emphasising that in terms of the recurring parking issues described in your email, ad-hoc enforcement is not likely to provide a sustainable solution. This is the responsibility of the local authority, and the highway authority within, in liaison with the town council. With finite resources it is also important, subject to other policing priorities, that resources are deployed to those locations where they will have the most impact and generate casualty reduction outcomes.
In the meantime, I would like to reassure you that Chief Inspector Franklin, Rother District Commander, and the local Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT) will continue to monitor the situation and, where available, ensure that officers attend and assess whether any lawful action or intervention can be taken.
I hope that this information is useful to you and thank you once again for taking the time to contact the Commissioner.
Kind regards
Graham Kane
Performance & Information Officer
Office of the Sussex Police & Crime Commissioner